The fire that broke out on Thursday evening in the Lugrade-Bacalhau de Coimbra unit has entered the stage of liquidation, the commander of the Sapadores Firefighters told Lusa news agency.
“The fire is in the recovery phase and we are still in the process of clearing out some of the hotspots,” Paulo Palrilla, Coimbra Sapadores fire commander, said in a brief statement to Lusa.
According to the Civil Protection website, at 2:30 p.m. there were still 182 operators supported by 56 vehicles.
The fire broke out around 9 pm on Thursday at the Lugrade division located in Torre de Vilela.
“As expected, we are faced with an absolute loss for this Lugrade division, which was opened in 2017. We appreciate the friendly words and the wave of solidarity that has arisen. Most importantly, there are no victims to be registered. The Lugrade division in Taveiro continues to operate at full capacity and a new Lugrade division located in Casais do Campo, Coimbra will soon be inaugurated,” the company said in a company announcement signed by directors Joselito Lucas and Vitor Lucas.
According to Carlos López, adviser with the civil protection portfolio of the Chamber of Coimbra, “there is still a lot of work [de rescaldo] do” on the spot, noting that “there is still a lot of fuel inside the unit.”
“This will be a lengthy process and we are taking the utmost precautions against ammonia buildup. [da unidade]” said Mayor Luce.
Carlos López stressed that the fire was believed to be under control but was never extinguished, stressing that from 04:00 “more smoke began to come out, energy and heat accumulated, and at 07:00 there was an explosion in one of the central areas of the plant and spread fire.”
The fire would start “in cold stores,” he explained, stressing that gaining access to these units was “difficult” because the facilities could never fight the flames directly.
In a memo released at dawn, Lugrade-Bacallo de Coimbra said the fire had caused “significant property damage” to the company’s northern division and ensured that the incident would not affect operations.
In this first statement, Lugrade-Bacalhau de Coimbra assured that “no work related to this incident will be compromised.”
In December 2022, Lusa’s agency, Lugrade-Bacalhau de Coimbra, estimated that 2022 would end with a turnover of around 40 million euros, representing an increase of almost six million compared to 2021, despite the recorded drop in consumption.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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