Portugal asks Europe for help as wildfires rage
Portugal has asked for more firefighting planes as at least 15 blazes raged in central and northern regions, including one that burned houses on the outskirts of the town of Albergaria-a-Velha.
More than 800 firefighters were battling that fire and three others in the northwestern Aveiro district, where police shut motorways – including a stretch of the main highway between the capital Lisbon and Porto – and evacuated several villages.
Thick smoke from the fires, that were stoked by strong winds and high temperatures, blanketed the area.
Authorities said they had deployed eight water-bombing aircraft in that district.
The government requested more aircraft from the European Commission under the EU civil protection mechanism known as RescEU.
Albergaria-a-Velha Mayor Antonio Loureiro told Lusa news agency the fire had burned down two houses and was raging in the industrial and residential perimeter of the town of some 25,000 people.
In total, officials said 1,500 firefighters were engaged across the country where temperatures topped 30C over the weekend and were expected to stay high on Monday and Tuesday.
Portugal and neighbouring Spain have recorded fewer fires than usual after a rainy start to the year. But both remain vulnerable to the increasingly hot and dry conditions that scientists have blamed on global warming. [Reuters]
