Fire in Madeira forces elderly people to flee their homes

The elderly man was accompanied by a woman. They both have mobility issues, but their daughters helped them walk. The 85-year-old woman also looked inconsolable, with tears streaming down her face.

“I live alone, I don’t want to leave the house, but I have to. I go to my son’s house. He’s a fireman, he’s fighting the flames,” he says. CM another elderly woman, also clearly worried.

But there are those who are ready to resist. “The fire is really approaching my house, but I am not going to leave. I will protect it with all my might, the firefighters have not been able to get there yet. My husband and daughters are there, and they will not leave. We will always protect our home,” the emigrant says. CM. This is the scenario we are seeing in Ribeira Brava and the surrounding municipalities. Some with buckets, some with hoses, are trying to save their work and lifelong memories from the sea of ​​flames. Strong winds continue to be the main enemy of the operators, who are trying to control the fire at any cost.

MEANS OF COMBAT

The President of the Legislative Assembly of Madeira says the state should provide the region with two more helicopters to fight the fires.

LEISURE

Fourteen secret hiking trails and four rest areas were closed on Sunday as a precaution.

AZORES HELP

The Azores government has expressed its readiness to send operational resources to help extinguish the fire in Madeira, creating a team.

FIRE FRONTS

The fire had three active fronts on Sunday afternoon, and about 160 people had already been displaced from their homes.