Fifty-seven people received medical attention until 11 a.m. this Friday due to the fires that are ravaging the municipalities of Calheta and Porto Moniz in Madeira, the Minister of Health and Civil Protection said, adding that 127 operatives remain on the ground.
At a press conference at the Regional Civil Protection Service in Funchal, Pedro Ramos presented the situation of the three fires that remain active in the municipalities of Câmara de Lobos, Calheta (western zone) and Porto Moniz (north coast), indicating that 400 people are in There is no electricity in people’s homes, and 33 people have been forced to leave their homes for safety reasons.
Of the 57 people treated, four were transferred to the Dr. Nelio Mendonça hospital in Funchal, including one firefighter due to smoke inhalation while fighting the fire.
ABOUT CM He knows that among the wounded there is a child.
The fire initially broke out on Wednesday at around 18:00 in the parish of Prazeres, municipality of Calheta, and spread overnight to the neighboring parish of Fajan da Ovelha and then, on Thursday afternoon, to the parishes of Ponta do Pargo. (still in the municipality of Calheta), Achadas da Cruz and Porto Moniz, both already in the municipality of Porto Moniz.
On Thursday afternoon, a fire was also reported in the parish of Quinta Grande in the municipality of Camara de Lobos, which remains active. That day there was also a fire in Curral das Freiras in the same municipality of Camara de Lobos, which was brought under control.
“We admitted four people to Dr. Nelio Mendonça Hospital: a firefighter due to smoke inhalation; a woman with burns who is stable and does not require intensive care; A 13-year-old boy with a suspected shoulder dislocation, and an 80-year-old woman also suffered from smoke inhalation,” Pedro Ramos said.
A government official said 24 people were treated at the health center in Porto Moniz, 16 in Calheta and 17 in Sao Vicente, including 12 tourists from a group of 13 who spent the night in Levada da Ribeira. yes-Janela and were rescued this morning. by a fire brigade.
“Of these 13 people, aged between 32 and 72, a French tourist was sent to the emergency department of the Dr. Nelio Mendonça Hospital for observation,” Pedro Ramos said, adding that the group consisted of five French, five Germans, one American and two Swiss .
Between Wednesday and today, several public and private buildings were evacuated and closed in Porto Moniz (a nursing home and health centers in Ashadas da Cruz and Santa) and in Calheta (a hotel, two schools, staff and a health center in the parish Fajan da Ovelha).
The regional secretary of health and civil protection said the fires damaged 18 kilometers of the electricity grid in the municipality of Calheta, leaving 350 users without electricity, as well as five kilometers in Porto Moniz, affecting 50 residents.
The telecommunications network also does not work in the parishes of Calheta, Pol do Mar, Fajão da Ovelha (Calheta municipality) and in the upper areas of Porto Moniz, where the population is most concentrated.
Thirty-three people from the municipality of Porto Moniz were forced to leave their homes for security reasons, gathering in the parish hall of the church and at the local high school.
Pedro Ramos noted that the most alarming is the fire currently raging in the municipality of Porto Moniz, where 80 militants are participating in the extinguishing effort, supported by 27 vehicles and the air force. In Calheta, 40 firefighters and 11 specialists are on the scene, while seven people and two specialists are involved in extinguishing the fire in Camara de Lobos.
The government of Madeira declared a state of emergency on Thursday due to fires raging in the region, thereby activating the Regional Civil Protection Emergency Plan.
Part of a contingent of 64 operatives from the National Emergency Management and Civil Protection Directorate, led by Coimbra Subregional Emergency and Civil Protection Commander Carlos Tavares, is already in Madeira to help fight the fires.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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