The fire, which has been raging on the island of Madeira for eight days, had burned 4,937.6 hectares by 12pm on Wednesday, according to the European Wildfire Information System (Copernicus).
An updated breakdown of the burned area was released by the European agency early Wednesday evening and covers data collected up to about 12:00 noon.
Figures released by the organisation on Tuesday, covering the situation up to 12:00 noon that day, showed that some 4,393 hectares had burned.
Also on Tuesday, in a conversation with Lusa, the president of the Regional Civil Protection Service (SRPC), António Nunes, asked about the figures presented on Monday by the regional secretary of responsibility, which indicated seven thousand hectares burned – explaining that “the confusion arises from the assessment of the external boundaries of the burned area.”
Within that area, he said, “there are a lot of vegetation bubbles that haven’t burned.”
The rural fire on the island of Madeira broke out a week ago, on August 14, in the mountains of the municipality of Ribeira Brava, gradually spreading to the municipalities of Câmara de Lobos, Ponta do Sol and, through Pico Ruivo, Santana.
According to an assessment made by the regional government president, Miguel Albuquerque, at 19:00, the fire has two active fronts and has spread towards the central mountain range of the island.
“The fire originated from Pico do Cardo, the upper part of Curral. [das Freiras]for the central mountain range. This means that we have a front at Pico das Torres, in a difficult to reach area, and another front at Pico Ruivo. [no concelho de Santana]”, said Miguel Albuquerque at a press conference in Funchal.
The president of the regional government explained that the current objective “is to contain the spread of the fire down towards Curral das Freiras” in the municipality of Câmara de Lobos, where “a protective strip has been created, and also to prevent the fire from developing on the lateral route towards Pico do Areiro.”
Regarding the Pico Ruivo front (the highest point on the island), the governor added that fire containment zones are being created and combat forces are being concentrated “at the foot of the mountain range to prevent this front from moving down towards the Fajã da Nogueira valley,” where the hydroelectric power station, “the main infrastructure,” is located.
Miguel Albuquerque added that there are about 140 operational personnel in the “theater of operations,” supported by 30 vehicles, and that the regional helicopter assigned to firefighting is still operating. Since the fires began, the Air Force has already made “about 170 airdrops” and completed “more than 35 hours of flight time.”
During these eight days, authorities ordered almost 200 people to leave their homes as a precaution and set up community reception centres, but many residents have already returned, with the exception of Fajã das Galinhas, in Camara de Lobos.
The fight against the fire was complicated by the dying wind and high temperatures, but there was no evidence of destruction of houses or vital infrastructure.
Some firefighters were treated for exhaustion or minor injuries without further injury.
The Judicial Police is investigating the cause of the fire, but the President of the Executive Power of Madeira, Miguel Albuquerque, has already declared it was arson.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
I’m Dave Martin, and I’m an experienced journalist working in the news industry. As a part of my work, I write for 24 News Reporters, covering mostly sports-related topics. With more than 5 years of experience as a journalist, I have written numerous articles on various topics to provide accurate information to readers.