In pics | Portugal, Spain continue to battle wildfires amid heatwave alerts

Nearly 1,000 firefighters continued to battle wildfire in southern Portugal on Tuesday (August 8) which have raged for four days and have burnt down thousands of hectares and forced the evacuation of around 1,400 people.

The wildfires which began on Saturday, in Alentejo region's municipality of Odemira has since spread to towards the Algarve, one of the country's top tourist destinations.

Image shows wildfire in Aljesur, Portugal, August 7, 2023

According to media reports, high temperatures and strong winds have been attributed to hindrance in efforts by the nearly 1,000 firefighters and six water-dousing planes deployed to extinguish the flames. 

Jose Ribeiro, regional commander of Portugal's emergency and civil protection authority (ANPC), said weather conditions were expected to remain challenging, reported Reuters.  

Andre Fernandes, ANPC's national commander, said bulldozers were being used to build fire breaks and prevent the blaze from spreading further.

Nearly 2,800 firefighters and 16 water bombers were working, on Tuesday, across the country, in a bid to stop the wildfires. 

Image shows firefighter battling wildfire in Carrascal, Proneca a Nova on August 6, 2023

Portugal’s civil protection authority said the perimeter of the wildfire had been "stabilised" overnight on Monday. However, there were still "two critical points" that required "a lot of effort". This also comes as Fernandes said that while there are several wildfires burning across Portugal but Odemira is the most worrying. 

Odemira's mayor, Helder Guerreiro has called the situation "critical, difficult and complex."

Meanwhile, Ribeiro said that despite the perimeter of the fire being contained there was still work ahead to bring it under control. "It is a worrying situation," the ANPC regional commander told reporters on Tuesday. 

Speaking about the situation, Ribeiro, also said that are two active fronts of the blaze, one heading to Monchique. 

Image shows burnt area after a wildfire in Reguengo, Portalegre district, south of Portugal, on August 8, 2023.

The wildfire that began on Saturday has destroyed some 7,000 hectares, including large areas of highly flammable pine and eucalyptus trees, across southern Portugal.

According to officials, as of Monday, around 20 villages, one of them in Monchique, four tourist accommodations and a camping site have been evacuated as a precaution. 

Additionally, at least 40 people, including 28 fire officers, have been given emergency medical treatment. 

Image shows people watching wildfire in Aljesur, Portugal, August 7, 2023.

On Tuesday, the heatwave in the Iberian Peninsula entered a second day and millions of people in parts of Portugal and Spain were affected. 

In Portugal, authorities declared some 120 municipalities in the north and central areas of the country's interior as well as the Algarve in the south, at maximum risk of wildfires due to the scorching heat.

Portugal's weather agency IPMA also put three districts in the northeast on red alert for high temperatures, a day after the temperatures in the central towns of Portalegre and Santarem broke five-year local records at 42.1 degrees Celsius and 46.4 degrees Celsius respectively. 

Meanwhile, in Spain, the country's weather agency AEMET said the southern province of Cordoba could see temperatures of up to 44 degrees Celsius, on Tuesday, adding that the heatwave would reach its peak on Wednesday, affecting almost the entire country.

Image shows man sheltering from the sun underneath an umbrella on his way to work in Madrid, Spain, August 7, 2023.

On Monday, Spanish officials reported a fourth large wildfire that broke out in Estremadura, central Spain, near the border with Portugal. The firefighters were unable to contain it overnight, reported AFP. 

 

 

On Tuesday, much of the southern half of Spain was placed on an orange alert by the AEMET. 

The Spanish weather agency also issued maximum red alerts for parts of Andalusia in the south, the Madrid region in the centre and the Basque Country in the far north. 

Over the weekend, more than 1,000 hectares of land were destroyed by flames in Spain, reported AFP. 

Image shows tree branches burning after wildfire in Puerto Real, near Cadiz, on August 6, 2023

A report by AFP citing preliminary estimates said that wildfires have destroyed 100,000 hectares of land across the Iberian Peninsula this year.

This comes a year after a record 400,000 hectares of land was destroyed in 2022. 

Image shows firefighter soaking an area in a burnt forest after wildfire in Puerto Real, near Cadiz, on August 6, 2023.