Portugal is experiencing a lull in the fire front and has declared “under control” the great forest fire in the Serra da Estrela natural park in the center of the country, according to the latest civil protection report.
“The fire is under control, but it is not extinguished. There is a whole consolidation work that will continue in the coming days,” the commander of civil protection told TSF radio on Wednesday evening.
“It is always possible and very likely that there will be new reactivations, but we hope that they do not take on worrying proportions,” he said.
The most important fire of the summer
Nearly a thousand firefighters are still mobilized Thursday morning on the ground. After being brought under control for the first time last week, the fire flared up again on Monday, fanned by strong winds.
>> Images of the fires in Portugal:
This blaze, which broke out on August 6 in the heart of this natural park recognized by Unesco, is the most important this summer in Portugal.
It set some 25,000 hectares of forest in this mountain range up in smoke, culminating at around 2,000 meters, according to still provisional estimates.
Another heat wave expected
Portugal, which is experiencing an exceptional drought this year, expects a new heat wave from Saturday. The Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere predicts a gradual rise in temperatures until September which should be “warmer and drier” than normal.
In the coming days “we will experience increased risks” in terms of fire, warned Interior Minister José Luis Carneiro.
>> Read also: Portugal struggles to put out the flames in a natural park in the center of the country
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