Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 10^th July 2024

Good morning everyone. We start with the good news that in the first six months of the year there were 1,812 rural fires, the lowest number since 2014, according to the first provisional report of 2024 by the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF).

The more than 1,800 fires resulted in 2,965 hectares (ha) of burnt area, the second lowest value in the last 10 years, only surpassed in 2016 with 1,853 hectares burned. According to ICNF data, comparing data from the first half of this year with the history of the previous 10 years, there were 60% fewer rural fires and 80% fewer burned areas. Of the total area burned between January 1 and June 30, 1,664 ha corresponded to scrubland, 723 ha to agricultural areas and 577 hectares to forest stands.

Only three fires were considered major by the ICNF and occurred in the municipalities of Reguengos de Monsaraz (Évora), with 333 ha burned, Aljustrel, with 167 ha, and Castro Verde, with 115 ha, (both municipalities in the district of Beja). These three fires occurred in June, the month with the highest number of fires and area burned.

It is important however not to let our guard down. Even though the fire risk has been lower than in some previous years, the Fire Weather Index has recently shown areas where the FWI has exceeded 50 i.e. EXTREME, which means that fires can burn with great intensity, and are difficult for firefighters to supress. So take extreme caution when this is shown on our daily fire risk report. As I mentioned on KissFM last Sunday, some of the major fires in 2017, the Monchique fire of 2018, Odemira fire of 2023 and Gambalas fire of 2022 all took place when the FWI was at or over this level.

Turning from Fire to Water! Hurricane Beryl that hit the Caribbean last week wasn’t a freak Storm – It’s the exact nightmare meteorologists have predicted

We have previously reported and highlighted concerns by meteorologists about increasing ocean temperatures particular the Atlantic, as these can affect Portugal, with occasional cyclones and even hurricanes affecting the Iberian Peninsula at the end of the summer season.

An article by Dennis Mersereau, a weather reporter with more than a decade of experience covering extreme storms around the world, gives an insight into why we should be concerned. “A hot ocean provides the energy hurricanes need to grow—and can limit the cooling that happens in their wake, making it likelier that the storms that follow will be powerful ones. Hurricane Beryl’s record-shattering intensification into a scale-topping Category 5 storm has stunned even the most seasoned experts. This storm is the nightmare scenario that meteorologists were worried about heading into the 2024 hurricane season.

All the warning indicators were blinking red in the weeks and months leading up to Beryl’s formation. The ocean is a veritable sauna ready to support any tropical disturbance that can get its act together this year. We are monitoring the storms closely as well as the likely impact here in Portugal

Reminder of the “Information and contacts poster” produced by Safe Communities for use in emergencies. This poster is designed to help you in an emergency. It can be a stressful time, so having information and essential contact details immediately available will help you in summoning help though 112. Just print from the link below, fill it in and place in a conspicuous place in your home, inside entrance doors for instance. If you family and friends staying with you, ensure they are aware. If you rent a property to clients also ensure they are aware. Our thanks to ANEPC for supporting and sharing this initiative. It can be downloaded here: https://www.safecommunitiesportugal.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Emergency-Information-and-Contacts-BW-.pdf

Our team at Safe Communities wish you a very happy week ahead.

News

Aguiar-Branco says that NATO principles have never been more important than today

Lisbon, 09 July 2024 (Lusa) – The president of parliament believes that NATO’s dual dimension of defence space and freedom has never been as important as it is today, and highlighted Portugal’s role in strengthening the southern flank of the Atlantic Alliance.

These positions were conveyed to the Lusa news agency by José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, who is participating in Washington at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly summit, which brings together 32 delegations from member states, including 23 presidents of national parliaments.

“This summit is taking place on NATO’s 75th anniversary, a milestone that highlights the importance of the Atlantic Alliance in its security and defence dimension. Everyone is aware that today democracy and freedom itself are at stake, as well as the world as we wish it to exist in a free society. Never before has this dual reality been present among all its member states,” declared the President of the Assembly of the Republic.

José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, former social-democratic Minister of Defense, is in Washington accompanied by the vice-president of the Assembly of the Republic, the socialist Marcos Perestrello.

In more operational terms, according to the president of the Portuguese parliament, this high-level meeting of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly is analyzing the strengthening of the articulation between the eastern and southern flanks of the Atlantic Alliance.

“Although the immediate risks are on the eastern flank, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, there is an awareness that the threats are global. We have threats such as disinformation, often via social media, which aims to create instability in NATO, particularly in terms of enlargement objectives,” he pointed out.

In this context, the President of the Assembly of the Republic also defended the need to create a strong line of communication in relation to third countries.

“At this summit, we will recognize that parliaments play a very important role today, as they represent different political families and shape the positions of different countries. The greater the exchange of antiparliamentary experiences, the greater the coordination, the greater the quality of the Atlantic Alliance will be strengthened,” he added.

2 Rodas: Agrerre-se à Vida’ campaign will inspect motorbikes from Wednesday

Lisbon, 09 Jul 2024 (Lusa) – The road safety campaign “2 Rodas: Agrerre-se à Vida” (2 Wheels: Hold on to Life) kicks off on Wednesday on Portuguese roads to monitor two-wheeled motor vehicles, driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding and mobile phone use.

This is the seventh of 12 awareness and inspection campaigns planned for this year within the scope of the National Inspection Plan (PNF), which are carried out annually by the Public Security Police (PSP), National Road Safety Authority (ANSR) and National Republican Guard (GNR) and will run until July 16.

The 2023 PNF established as priorities the themes of speed, alcohol, safety accessories and mobile phones and this year’s, according to a statement from the PSP, in addition to these four themes, adds a new chapter on the inspection of two-wheeled motor vehicles.

The “2 Rodas: Agrerre-se à Vida” campaign includes awareness-raising actions by ANSR and inspection operations by the PSP and GNR.

These operations, according to the statement, will have a special focus on roads and access points with high traffic flow to help reduce the risk of accidents and encourage drivers to adopt safer behaviour.

Security forces remind motorcycle and moped users of the importance of wearing an approved helmet, properly fastened and adjusted, thus reducing the risk of death in the event of an accident by 40%.

The use of other protective equipment such as gloves, boots, jackets with protectors, trousers with protectors and airbags, contribute to reducing the severity of the consequences in the event of an accident, they also warn.