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Serious Portugal wildfire: 62 Confirmed Deaths
Submitted by Eye, 19-06-2017, 05:30 PM, Thread ID: 37080
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19-06-2017, 05:30 PM
#1 A raging forest fire in centralPortugalthis weekend killed more than 60 people, including at least 30 motorists who were trapped in their cars when the flames enveloped a stretch of road.
The fire, which was still burning on Sunday afternoon, has brought ?a dimension of human tragedy that we cannot remember, Prime Minister Antnio Costa said during a visit to the scorched area around Pedrgo Grande.
The initial deadly blaze started on Saturday, and the flames spread along four fronts with ?great violence, said Jorge Gomes, the secretary of state for internal administration. By Sunday afternoon, five infernos were raging in central Portugal, he said.
The death toll stood at 61, according to Lusa, the national news agency. Officials said they expected the toll to rise.
Half of the people killed died in their cars, Mr. Gomes confirmed, after being hemmed in by the flames while driving along a road through the densely forested area between Figueir dos Vinhos and Castanheira de Pra.
Officials said they had found 17 bodies near the road, possibly those of people who had tried to escape on foot once they realized there was no way to continue driving. Two people were also killed in a car crash related to the fire.
Several houses were destroyed by the flames. Portuguese television showed people scrambling to leave their homes in the early hours of Sunday morning, escorted by firefighters and other rescue teams, as huge flames engulfed hamlets across the dry, cracked terrain.
Several roads were cut off by flames and thick smoke as firefighters tried to prevent the fires from spreading.
About 1,600 firefighters, assisted by airplanes and helicopters, were working to contain the damage. The police and military units were called in to help, and European Union officials in Brussels activated the blocs civil protection mechanism to send reinforcements. Spain sent two planes to help contain the fires.
Some images of the incident:
Image 1:
[spoiler]![[Image: 19PORTUGAL8-superJumbo.jpg]](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2017/06/19/world/19PORTUGAL8/19PORTUGAL8-superJumbo.jpg)
Image 2:
![[Image: 19PORTUGAL11-superJumbo.jpg]](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2017/06/19/world/19PORTUGAL11/19PORTUGAL11-superJumbo.jpg)
Image 3:
![[Image: portugal-img-superJumbo.jpg]](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2017/06/18/world/europe/portugal-img/portugal-img-superJumbo.jpg)
Image 4:
![[Image: 19PORTUGAL9-superJumbo.jpg]](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2017/06/19/world/19PORTUGAL9/19PORTUGAL9-superJumbo.jpg)
[/spoiler]
The fire, which was still burning on Sunday afternoon, has brought ?a dimension of human tragedy that we cannot remember, Prime Minister Antnio Costa said during a visit to the scorched area around Pedrgo Grande.
The initial deadly blaze started on Saturday, and the flames spread along four fronts with ?great violence, said Jorge Gomes, the secretary of state for internal administration. By Sunday afternoon, five infernos were raging in central Portugal, he said.
The death toll stood at 61, according to Lusa, the national news agency. Officials said they expected the toll to rise.
Half of the people killed died in their cars, Mr. Gomes confirmed, after being hemmed in by the flames while driving along a road through the densely forested area between Figueir dos Vinhos and Castanheira de Pra.
Officials said they had found 17 bodies near the road, possibly those of people who had tried to escape on foot once they realized there was no way to continue driving. Two people were also killed in a car crash related to the fire.
Several houses were destroyed by the flames. Portuguese television showed people scrambling to leave their homes in the early hours of Sunday morning, escorted by firefighters and other rescue teams, as huge flames engulfed hamlets across the dry, cracked terrain.
Several roads were cut off by flames and thick smoke as firefighters tried to prevent the fires from spreading.
About 1,600 firefighters, assisted by airplanes and helicopters, were working to contain the damage. The police and military units were called in to help, and European Union officials in Brussels activated the blocs civil protection mechanism to send reinforcements. Spain sent two planes to help contain the fires.
Some images of the incident:
Image 1:
[spoiler]
Image 2:
Image 3:
Image 4:
[/spoiler]
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