Year: 2017

An explosion at an ATM in Maceira, in the municipality of Leiria, on 6^th October destroyed the premises of a bank branch, according to Lusa quoting volunteer firefighters of that village.

The explosion in the ATM occurred at 05:20, according to GNR source, adding that the investigation of the case is in charge of the Judiciary Police.

In addition to having “totally destroyed” the bank branch, installed on the ground floor of a three-story building, the blast also “damaged” three commercial establishments,according to Volunteer Bombeiros commander Luís Ferreira .

However, the structure of the building was not affected.

Following the blast, a “small fire” occurred, but without causing major damage, the source added, indicating that he was unaware of any casualties.

The explosion was caused by “at least two people” who attacked the automatic teller machine, but it is not yet known if the robbery was actually consummated.

The bank facilities affected are one of four banking branches operating in the town of Maceira and seat of parish with about ten thousand inhabitants.

Meanwhile three ATMs were blown up early on 6^th October in the municipalities of Vila do Conde, Maia and Paredes.

The assaults, which could have been committed by the same group – four or five hooded persons who were armed, in a black BMW – occurred between 02.00 and 04.50 hrs in Labruge (Vila do Conde), S. Pedro de Fins (Maia) and Recarei.

In at least two of the cases, the ATMS were installed in bank branches.

The month of September in mainland Portugal was the hottest of the last 87 years, classifying itself as extremely dry, the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) said Friday.

In September the average maximum air temperature (27.49 degrees Celsius) was higher than normal and the average minimum (12.42 degrees Celsius) Celsius) was lower than normal, the fifth lowest since 1931 “.

The period from 01 to 08 September was the hottest of the month, with 06 being the hottest, with an average temperature of 24.1 degrees Celsius (3.9 degrees more than normal).

The highest value of maximum air temperature occurred on September 7, with 33.1 degrees Celsius (plus 6.8 degrees to normal).

More than 80% of continental Portugal was in severe drought in September, according to the IPMA which characterized that month as “extremely hot”.

According to the IPMA, in September there was an increase in the area in severe and extreme drought conditions. On 30^th September, 81% of the territory was in severe drought, 7.4% in extreme drought, 10.7% in moderate drought and 0.8% in weak drought.

At the end of August, 58.9% of the territory was in severe drought and 0.7% in extreme drought.

The IPMA classifies the dry weather index in nine classes, ranging from “extreme rain” to “extreme drought”.

The IPMA explains that the “conjugation of much lower than normal rainfall and temperature far above normal, in particular the maximum, resulted in the occurrence of high evapotranspiration values ​​and significant values ​​of soil moisture deficits”.

In the document, the institute notes that on 30 September it was found that in most of the interior and southern regions of Portugal mainland water values ​​were less than 20%.

For the period October 1, 2016 to September 30, 2017 the total accumulated precipitation was 621.8 millimeters (70% of normal), being the 9th lowest value since 1931”.

The period from April to September, according to the institute, was extremely dry, with monthly values ​​of the amount of precipitation always lower than the average value, which corresponds to the driest second after 2005.

According to the most recent data, the amount of water stored in September fell again in all monitored continental Portugal basins.

Earlier this week, the Secretary of State for the Environment, Carlos Martins, stated at the end of the meeting of the Water Management Commission there is a the imminent risk of water scarcity in the municipalities served by the Fagilde Dam, in the district of Viseu.

The drought has already prompted the Government to grant exceptional support to farmers to catch water, namely in the Alentejo districts of Évora, Beja and Portalegre and in the municipalities of Alcácer do Sal, Grândola and Santiago do Cacém, bathed by Sado.

Maritime Police will have a more visible presence at the main beach areas, such as such as Cascais, Almada, Nazaré and Algarve as in many there is likely to be a reduction in lifeguards or at some, no lifeguards.

The main bathing areas will be reinforced by the Maritime Police until Sunday. In a week when temperatures are set to continue high. With a national holiday today (Thursday) many people are expected to take a long weekend break and the coastal areas may be the main choice.

As at this time of year the vast majority of city councils no longer have beaches manned by lifeguards, so the Maritime Police will have “a more visible presence, especially at the weekend”.

However in the case of  Cascais, up to October 15, there will be 38 lifeguards, 25 of them hired by the municipality that decided to keep the bathing season until October 15.

According to Alexandre Tadeia, President of the Portuguese Federation of Lifeguards, there is a need to change the way of contracting lifeguards, in order to avoid this situation and ensure safety at beaches .

At present “The assistance to the bathers is paid by concessionaires and many at this moment no longer have the establishments open,” he told the Diarios de Noticais.

He recalled that “since 2008 we have proposed a different model of assistance to swimmers, with the payment of a municipal fee and then a government entity should hire the lifeguards. He added that the incentive model must be reviewed, since most of the lifeguards are students who are already in university at this time.

The AMN have advised bathers that with hot weather (temperature varying in many areas between 28 – 36 C) coupled with sea temperatures of only 16 and 19C, people should take care to avoid cold water shock.

This is the body’s short term involuntary response to being suddenly immersed in cold water. When the body enters this cold environment there are a number of physiological responses. The sudden lowering of skin temperature is one of the most profound stimuli that the body can encounter. The responses tend to be short lived, but threaten survival.

The AMN state that this can take place particularly when diving into cold water when the air temperature is high. This together with the fact that there are “practically no supervised beach areas at this time of the year, means it is important to step up prevention and safety efforts”.

The Portuguese Federation of Lifeguards adds “People have to be careful when they go to the beach and enter the water particularly for non-swimmers”.

 

The AMN advise is:

• Do not risk swimming if there are any doubts about sea conditions;

• Have an interval of three hours between a normal meal and swimming;

• Take care when walking close to the water line as a sudden wave can drag the person into a dangerous situation;

• Watch children and do not let them play near the water line and

Be careful of entering the water due to the already mentioned low temperature that can cause thermal shocks when diving.

The Judicial Police detained two people and seized 400 kilograms of cocaine aboard a vessel intercepted in the Atlantic Ocean, it was announced today.

In a statement, the PJ said that the National Unit to Combat Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs, in collaboration with the Portuguese Navy and the Air Force, has in recent days carried out an operation to combat drug trafficking by sea and intercepted in the Ocean Atlantic, a pleasure craft that was being used to transport 400 kilos of cocaine.

Police seized the vessel and the drug and arrested two foreign men, 45 and 58, who are already in custody. They suspect “a criminal organization of a transnational dimension in different countries of the European continent and Latin America involved in the trafficking.

The cocaine seized was to be transported from the Caribbean to the Europe, and then destined to be distributed by different countries, police said.

This is the result of an investigation initiated recently by PJ following the exchange of information within the framework of the Lisbon-based Maritime Analysis and Operations Center – Narcotics (MAOC-N).

The investigation is carried out by the PJ in cooperation with the authorities of other countries.

Safe Communities Portugal is organising a Crime Prevention and Public Safety Seminar which will take place at the Auditorium of Expoeste, ADIO-Associao para o Desenvolvimento Industrial do Oeste. Avenue Infante D. Enrique, no 1 2500 918, Caldas da Rainha on Wednesday 11^th October 2017. Doors open 15.30 event starts at 16.00 hrs and lasts until 19.00 hrs. Presentations in English/Portuguese.

This event which is an open invitation to everyone, is being organised by Associação Safe Communities Portugal in conjunction with the GNR, PSP, Bombeiros and Policia Maritima. The Mayor of Caldas da Rainha will open the event.

The aim of the event is to raise public awareness of the roles of the services represented and also to foster greater understanding of the needs of the communities.

Presentations by each of the organisations will be followed by a question and answer session.

Meeting the needs of the communities in which they serve, helps the organisations to develop greater understanding of issues of concern. Equally important is that the communities are able to assist the Emergency services where appropriate in order to maintain or develop a safer and peaceful community.

Safe Communities Portugal has worked with the services represented for this end and look forward to developing a stronger collaborative approach which benefits everyone. This event gives you the opportunity to meet and question the representatives and gain a greater understanding of their work.

The Mayor of Caldas da Rainha, David Thomas President of Safe Communities Portugal and the officials representing the services look forward to meeting with you, on the 11^th of October.

Lisbon, Sept. 27 (Lusa) – Portugal is one of the safest countries in the world and, according to the Minister of Internal Administration, the security climate creates an environment conducive to attracting foreign investment and securing more residents from other European countries.

Constança Urbano de Sousa was the guest of a lunch organized by the Portuguese-Spanish Chamber of Commerce and Industry with businessmen, in which she spoke of the area of ​​security, fight against terrorism and transnational crime, increased flow of immigrants and refugees, investment increase in the number of residents and “good cooperation” between Portugal and Spain.

“Portugal is one of the safest countries in the world and since 2008 we have witnessed a very sustained and continuous decline in general crime, with a reduction between 2008 and 2016 of 21% less and violent and serious crime of 32% in this time period” , revealed the minister.

In the first half of the year, provisional data indicate that the downward trend continues in comparison with the same period of last year, in the order of 9%.

“The various international indexes rank us third as one of the safest countries in the world,” she said.

In Portugal there is a climate of security and public tranquility that has allowed, according to Constança Urbano de Sousa, the country’s economic development and investment, both of which have “an enormous added value in terms of competitiveness and economic and financial recovery.

 

In the largest action of its kind, INTERPOL’s Operation Pangea X targeting the illicit online sale of medicines and medical devices, saw some 400 arrests worldwide and the seizure of more than USD 51 million worth of potentially dangerous medicines.

Europol supported INTERPOL’s Operation Pangea with two analysts performing checks on entities against Europol’s databases. In addition, a specialist and an analyst with a mobile office and a device for forensic support were sent by Europol to Budapest, Hungary, to conduct checks on the spot.

Overall, involving 197 police, customs and health regulatory authorities from a record 123 countries, Operation Pangea X led to a record number of 25 million illicit and counterfeit medicines seized worldwide.

The action resulted in the launch of 1058 investigations, 3584 websites taken offline and the suspension of more than 3000 online adverts for illicit pharmaceuticals.

Among the fake and illicit medicines seized during the international week of action (12 – 19 September) were dietary supplements, pain reduction pills, epilepsy medication, erectile dysfunction pills, anti-psychotic medication and nutritional products.

In addition to medicines, Operation Pangea X also focused on the sale of

Illicit medical devices, such as dental devices and implants, condoms, syringes, medical testing strips and surgical equipment. Illicit devices worth an estimated USD 500 000 were recovered.

Starting with just eight countries in 2008, Operation Pangea has grown exponentially during the past 10 years, with police, customs and drug regulatory authorities from 123 countries taking part in 2017.

The main trend identified during the decade of Pangea operations is the continuous growth of unauthorised and unregulated online pharmacies, which capitalise on increasing consumer demand worldwide to advertise and sell illicit or counterfeit medicines.

 

On 17^th September the Loures Division of PSP Lisbon Metropolitan Command arrested three men between 21 and 31 years old, suspected of drug trafficking and possession of a prohibited weapon.

One of the detainees was arrested as a result of an arrest warrant issued by the judicial authority.

In The course of the investigations launched and following a planned police operation, it was possible locate and seize the following: 2 automatic firearms cal. 9 mm; an automatic rifle, cal. 5,56 mm; a .22 pistol; a ballistic vest; 168 calibre rounds. 22; 150 rounds, cal. 9 mm; 17 rounds, cal. 5,56 mm; 25 rounds, cal. 12; 2 precision balances; 9232 doses of hashish; 2661 doses of marijuana; 41 doses of cocaine; 17 grams of mdma and  EUR 1050 in cash.

The Detainees will be present at the judicial court of the north, the core of Loures, for the purposes of 1th judicial interrogation.