Portugal: The Largest Fire in Its History Finally Contained, Nearly 1,000 Firefighters Still Deployed
In central Portugal, nearly 1,000 firefighters remained deployed on Monday to prevent any resurgence of the fire, following the containment of a massive forest wildfire the previous day.
The blaze, which lasted 11 days, affected seven municipalities straddling the districts of Coimbra, Guarda, and Castelo Branco, destroying a total of 64,451 hectares of vegetation, according to the latest data.
Authorities stated that the fire was ignited by lightning strikes in a hard-to-reach area, complicating initial response efforts. Although the risk of spread has diminished, vigilance remains: 963 firefighters and 300 vehicles are still on site for monitoring and securing operations.
According to the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF), this wildfire is the largest ever recorded in Portugal, surpassing the previous record set in October 2017, when a single fire burned 53,000 hectares.
