Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 2^nd April 2025

Good afternoon. We lead with the news that violent and serious crime increased by 2.6% last year compared to 2023, with 14,385 crimes registered, while general crime fell by 4.6% with 354,878 reports, according to the Annual Internal Security Report (RASI). A preliminary version of the 2024 RASI, was approved on Monday by the meeting of the Superior Council for Internal Security and will now be sent to the Assembly of the Republic.

Apart from an increase in violent crime there are parts of the report related to children which make uncomfortable reading, namely: that young people between 12 and 16 years old are being sold intimate content online; that youth crime: crimes are “increasingly serious” and sexual violence is on the rise and that more and more minors are being lured online by the far right. Anyone who has children between the ages of 10-13 should read this to be aware of these trends.

The preliminary figures version shows an increase: in robbery by snatching (up 8.7%), car theft (up 106.3%), robbery in commercial or industrial buildings (up 21.7%), rape (up 9.9%) and robbery at banks or other credit institutions (up 128.6%). The crimes that fell the most last year compared to 2023 were harassment in the work place (-16.2%), serious assaults (-6.1%), robbery on public roads except by snatching (-0.3%), other robberies (-8.3%) and robbery at a fuel station (-12.3%).

The above figures are from press releases and without the publication of the RASI report itself the context of the crime trends cannot be analysed. For instance the number of thefts of vehicles has more than doubled but the there is no mention of “thefts from vehicles which traditionally is one of the highest crimes – nor is there any mention of drug trafficking. It is important to guard against reading too much into percentage changes as the actual figures may only represent a very small variation. The RASI report will now be sent to the Assembly of We await the RASI report.

Figures from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) published on Monday for the 2024 wildfire season in the European Union, showed a total burnt area of 419 298 ha, which is slightly above average of the period 2006 – 2023. About 35% of this, i.e. 147 017 ha, occurred on Natura200 sites. However, it is relevant to mention that many wildfires, which caused extensive burnt areas, occurred in the Balkan region, inside and outside the EU territory. It is worth mentioning that a record number of wildfires were mapped in EFFIS in the Ukrainian territory. The distribution of these fires depicts the area of the combat frontline in the war between Ukraine and Russia.

In Portugal in 2024, a total of 147 461 ha was mapped from 735 fires, more than in the previous six years, although still far short of the extreme year of 2017 .Up to September, it had been a quiet year, but nearly 90% of the annual total occurred in that month. The two largest fires mapped by EFFIS in 2024 both occurred in this month: one of over 35 000 ha in Reriz e Gafanhão municipality and a second one over 20 000 ha in Albergaria-a-Velha e Valmaior.

If you are planning to visit Lisbon please note that the circulation and parking of tuk tuks will be subject to restricted areas from this Tuesday 1st April 2025, with a ban on their passage on 337 streets in the capital, following an order from the City Council. The local authority’s order, signed in February, determines the prohibition of circulation on several roads in the parishes of Avenidas Novas, Arroios, Penha de França, São Vicente, Santo António, Misericórdia and Santa Maria Maior and the indication of areas designated for stopping and parking.

Quoted in the statement, the Mayor of Lisbon, Carlos Moedas (PSD), said that “the many excesses” forced the municipality “to have to assume zero tolerance for some of the areas that have been heavily affected by an unregulated presence of this type of vehicle”.

On 26th March 2025 the “European Commission and High Representative” launched the Preparedness Union Strategy to support Member States and enhance Europe’s capability to prevent and respond to emerging threats. This is a very important development as it affects all us living in the EU. From “a global perspective, we’re all living in uncertain times. With the added threat of abandonment of support (on many levels) from the United States to long-standing European allies, I applaud the European Union for being proactive – not just for natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and fires, but also from a cyber and military defence standpoint”.

“It’s not that these threats are new, but the stakes are much higher now and it’s time for Europe to step up by becoming more vigilant, prepared, and aware. It’s also now up to the European population to pay attention and take heed”. I have written an article covering this development which appear in the Portugal Resident tomorrow 2^nd April.

Our team at Safe Communities Portugal wish you a nice week ahead.

News

More and more minors are being lured online by the far right

The Annual Internal Security Report (RASI) reveals that the new far-right nationalist movements have a strong online presence and charismatic leaders who act as true influencers. There is “a proliferation of increasingly diverse and sophisticated conversation channels, including online gaming platforms, and content-sharing groups, which promote the mass dissemination of extremist content and facilitate recruitment and (self) radicalization processes.”

Far-right propaganda gained strength in Portugal in the 2024 elections and more and more young people, many under the age of 16, are being lured online by these movements, the internal security report reveals.

In the chapter dedicated to global threats to internal security, the 2024 Annual Homeland Security Report (RASI) states that “traditional white supremacist and neo-Nazi skinhead movements, characterized by their street actions and violence, are not as appealing to young people as new far-right nationalist movements with a strong online presence and charismatic leaders who act as true influencers.”

The document highlights that there is “a proliferation of increasingly diverse and sophisticated conversation channels, including online gaming platforms, and content sharing groups, which promote the mass dissemination of extremist content and facilitate recruitment and (self) radicalization processes”.

“Online platforms have been the privileged stage for the action of decentralized far-right movements of an accelerationist and/or satanic nature, where, through a culture of communication through memes, they recruit and radicalize increasingly younger individuals, many of them under the age of 16”, specifies the RASI, considering that the evolution of this phenomenon in recent years “imposes that the threat posed by possible solitary far-right actors, especially minors, cannot be ignored”.

The report also highlights that the Portuguese far-right “showed marked dynamism” and extensively exploited the two electoral periods of 2024 – legislative and European – to intensify the carrying out of symbolic, protest and propaganda actions as a vehicle for the dissemination of its ideology.

Young people between 12 and 16 years old being sold intimate content online

Last year, young people in Portugal aged between 12 and 16 produced and sold intimate content online, and children aged between 10 and 13 were identified as being responsible for creating these sharing groups.

The information is contained in the preliminary document of the Annual Internal Security Report (RASI) presented this Monday during the meeting of the Superior Council for Internal Security, and to which Lusa had access, and warns of content self-produced by young people between 12 and 16 years old.

The production of this content is intended for sale through sharing in WhatsApp groups, which are created to also distribute adult pornography and content of extreme violence, including violence against children, reveals the preliminary document.

RASI also states that investigations by the authorities managed to identify, last year, children between the ages of 10 and 13 as responsible for creating these groups where information is shared and the sharing of which, in itself, constitutes a crime. These cases were, according to the document, sent to the family and juvenile courts, since the children and young people identified are minors.

This information appears in the RASI chapter dedicated to the online exploitation of minors, which is included in computer crime. The online exploitation of minors, RASI further details, continues to be a priority at European level.

Last year, authorities identified a high prevalence of pornography distribution on networks such as Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram and Google Drive, as well as the sharing of child sexual abuse and exploitation content through the darknet.

For parents

A VERY WORRYING TREND – which every parent with children in this age group should be aware of.

Speak to your child about online safety. A positive and open conversation, free from blame and shame, can help children speak up and reach out to the services they need if they do encounter exploitation and abuse online.

Children often ‘know’ the perpetrators of online abuse. Gently remind them of the signs to be aware of – many of the same behaviours and factors that keep children safe from offline risks can help keep them safe online.

Youth crime: crimes are “increasingly serious” and sexual violence is on the rise

A preliminary version of the 2024 Annual Internal Security Report indicates that, despite there having been “a certain calm” in serious crimes against life and serious assaults by young people in a group context last year, the crimes “are increasingly serious and are committed by increasingly younger individuals “.

Juvenile delinquency continued its upward trend last year since 2021, reveals the internal security report, which highlights “the predominance of cases linked to sexual crime” and the worsening of crimes among young people.

A preliminary version of the 2024 Annual Internal Security Report (RASI), which will be approved this Monday at the meeting of the Superior Council for Internal Security, indicates that juvenile delinquency has maintained its upward trend since 2021, registering an increase of 12.5% ​​last year compared to 2023, with group crime also continuing to increase, which registered an increase of 7.7%.

According to the document, last year there was a “predominance of cases linked to sexual crime, namely the sexual abuse of children committed by minor offenders, aged between 12 and 16”, in addition to “also highlighting the crime of child pornography using applications such as Discord and Whatsapp, used to share files of a sexual and pornographic nature”.

The report states that “a firearm or a bladed weapon is easily used to attack” and that these episodes of violence “often occur simply on the basis of futile discussions”.

It is also possible to verify that violence associated with youth groups, whose suspects are between 15 and 25 years old, has had “a considerable prominence in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area”.

This preliminary version highlights that, despite there having been “a certain calm” in serious crimes against life and physical integrity by young people in a group context last year, the crimes “are increasingly serious and are committed by increasingly younger individuals, in which the value of human life has no relevance whatsoever”.

According to RASI, some dynamics associated with rivalries between groups from different areas or neighbourhoods in the Lisbon metropolitan area continue to exist, conflicts that are often referred to “in songs and music videos from musical subcultures that present hyperlocal and hyperpersonal references (specifically to a geographic area, particular occurrence, individual or specific date)”.

The report indicates that social networks are an “extension of the group and the neighbourhood itself.”

Noting that there must be “a considerable number of black figures” (unreported crimes), the report states that these groups also use YouTube as their main vehicle for publishing content and highlights that, in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, there are some incidents in shopping centers and near train and metro stations, which increases “the repercussion of news in the media and the consequent feeling of insecurity”.

RASI also highlights another trend of episodes (some unreported) near schools, “probably because the perpetrators know some of the victims’ routines and the establishments they frequent”.

The report also highlights the episodes of urban violence recorded in 2024 after the death of Odair Moniz by a PSP agent in Cova da Moura, in Amadora, in which many of the suspects who were later identified, in different areas of Greater Lisbon, were members of these groups and used social media to organize and quickly mobilize protesters, which makes “evident the capacity to amplify a message of hate and incitement to violence, which largely led to the escalation and generalization of violence”.

 

Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 26^th March 2025

Good afternoon everyone,

News

Violence is on the rise among young people and it goes hand in hand with mobile phones

Rita, Filipe and Gustavo do not know each other, but they have in common the fact that they were victims of violence at school. Official figures tell us that juvenile delinquency is on the rise, while parents and schools blame each other for the issue. Growing up in a stable family, or even attending a privileged school, no longer protects anyone from becoming an aggressor, victim or witness. Unfiltered violence is on mobile phones, the companion that fills most of teenagers’ days. Too often, it is uncensored.

You don’t need to watch “Teenage” on Netflix to get scared. Just look at the notification history that weighs on your pocket. Student threatens classmates with a knife in Sintra. Young man attacked with a machete near the school in São João do Estoril.

In recent weeks, the perception — which risks being elected word of the year — is that our cell phones are calling us too often to address this issue. The news seems to always be the same. But it isn’t.

Autistic student brutally attacked in Moita. Students film attacker punching classmate in Barreiro. Young people attack each other during class and one is taken to hospital. Student throws chair at teacher.

While the finger scrolls through these news stories, swiping away at the ones they don’t want to read, Rita, Filipe and Gustavo experience physical, verbal and psychological abuse firsthand. The aftermath? Rita, 16, began to mutilate herself and have panic attacks. Gustavo, 15, talks about suicide. Filipe, 9 and on the autism spectrum, says he should never have been born. The names of the three are fictitious and the parents also ask for anonymity to tell these stories, for fear that their children will suffer more in schools, all in Lisbon.

This perception is supported by the numbers. The most recent Annual Internal Security Report, the 2023 RASI, shows a clear increase in juvenile delinquency. Preliminary figures released in 2024 — from Escola Segura, APAV, and various studies on bullying — tell us that the pattern will continue.

However, it is not known when the final, official figures will be released. The presentation of the RASI by this Government still depends on Luís Montenegro, the Minister of Justice clarified last week. The RASI must be presented to Parliament (the law sets the deadline as 31 March), but the Assembly of the Republic has been dissolved. Even if the submission is not called into question, it is certain that the usual debate will not take place. Expresso released some figures this Monday, but these are provisional figures.

In Portugal, RASI 2023 reports 1,833 incidents of juvenile delinquency (crimes committed by young people between the ages of 12 and 16) — an increase of 8.7% and the highest number since 2017. It is in the Lisbon metropolitan area — where the Rita, Filipe and Gustavo schools are located — that there is a greater number of incidents, with emphasis on the municipalities of Loures and Amadora.

There were also 2,048 arrests (+13.1%) related to group crime — defined as a crime committed by three or more suspects. It increased by 14.6% in 2023 : a total of 6,756 occurrences, the highest value since 2014.

Portugal records 1,584 cases of tuberculosis in 2023, with the highest incidence in Lisbon and the North

The most common form of the disease continues to be pulmonary, with a higher level of contagiousness, with 51.4% of pulmonary cases being contagious. The disease continues to predominate in men.

Portugal recorded 1,584 cases of tuberculosis in 2023, maintaining the notification rate at 14.9 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, with the regions of Lisbon and Vale do Tejo and the North presenting the highest incidences.

The data, which appears in the tuberculosis surveillance and monitoring report in Portugal by the Directorate-General for Health (DGS), released on World Tuberculosis Day, indicate that of the 1,584 cases of tuberculosis reported, 1,461 were new cases and 123 were retreatments.

According to the document, the migrant population remained a population in a situation of greater vulnerability, with a notification rate 3.6 times higher than the national average (54.3 cases per 100,000 migrants in 2023), with an increase in the proportion of cases, compared to 2022 (35.8% in 2023 and 30% in 2022).

The Lisbon and Tagus Valley region and the North region remained the two regions with the highest incidence, with 18.2 and 16 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively, highlights the report, which will be presented this Monday, in Porto, at the meeting promoted by the DGS “Tuberculosis in Portugal: epidemiology and strategies” .

“ There were 76 deaths, which corresponds to a fatality rate of 4.8% in all reported cases , and the deaths are associated with other comorbidities and also with an age group over 75 years old,” the director of the National Tuberculosis Program (PNT) of the DGS, Isabel Carvalho, told Lusa.

He noted that it is a disease that continues to predominate in men, corresponding to 68.3% of reported cases.

“Tuberculosis continues to be a disease that has a greater focus on populations in situations of greater vulnerability, whether in the migrant population, or also in its association with other social determinants, such as addictions, or other infections, such as HIV infection or other chronic diseases, such as poorly controlled diabetes or even oncological diseases”, he highlighted.

Isabel Carvalho noted that the most frequent form of the disease continues to be pulmonary (70.8% in 2023), with a higher level of contagiousness, highlighting that 51.4% of these pulmonary cases were contagious.

 

Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 19^th March

Good afternoon everyone. Without any doubt the headline is the considerable amount of rain we have experienced so far this month. To date Castelo Branco and Beja already have around 4.5 times what is the normal average for March, Évora around 4 times and Faro, Santarém and Setúbal close to 3 times. If the forecast volume associated with Martinho is correct it will reach 4 to 6 times the normal average in most of these districts by Monday. This has resulted in the discharge of water from a number of dams including the Algarve, the first time for a number of years. On Tuesday March 18 morning, a safety water release began at the Odeleite reservoir, which was then at 98% of its total volume.

Civil Protection warns of the possibility of flooding and landslides due to the heavy rain expected until Thursday morning. This is one of the effects of the Martinho depression, which is currently west of the Iberian Peninsula. The deputy commander of Civil Protection operations, Alexandre Penha, is asking the population to avoid unnecessary travel. Civil Protection is also asking the population to be cautious on the roads and to avoid coastal areas and riverside areas. SMS warnings were sent by the ANEPC yesterday. It is therefore important to follow the ANEPC advice and the IPMA.

Madeira has also been affected by Martinho and the maritime authority recommends that “the entire maritime community and the general population take the following precautions, both when preparing to go to sea and when at sea or in coastal areas, namely: Reinforce mooring and maintain close surveillance of moored and anchored vessels; avoid walks near the sea or in areas exposed to rough seas, such as the protective breakwaters of ports, cliffs or beaches, to avoid being surprised by a wave and not to  engage in recreational fishing, especially near cliffs and cliff areas frequently hit by breaking waves, always bearing in mind that in these conditions the sea can easily reach apparently safe areas.

If you are visiting Lisbon be aware that pickpockets do operation in a number of tourist areas, despite the enforcement action taken by the police (PSP). The number of pickpockets attested continues to increase in Lisbon. Last year, 141 people were arrested. The PSP recommends preventive measures such as: carrying your wallet, money and cards in the inside pockets of your clothes and never putting anything in your outside pockets. You should also avoid carrying large amounts of money or valuable objects. Backpacks etc., should always be closed and carried on the front of the body. The Public Security Police also appeals to all people to report crimes of which they are aware, whether as victims or witnesses. They emphasize that the quicker the report is made, the faster the investigations will be carried out to identify the suspects.

Turning to road accidents a recent survey conducted in Portugal found that almost 30% of drivers surveyed in the study indicated that the cause of their last accident was fatigue 20.2% and falling asleep at the wheel 9.5%. According to the survey, professional drivers, shift workers and young people are particularly vulnerable to fatigue while driving, due to irregular working hours and lifestyles that increase the risk of drowsiness at the wheel. According to the GNR drivers are aware of the measures they should take in the event of fatigue. However, as the study shows, this is not the reality and they opt for measures that are not as effective and end up putting their driving at risk, such as (…) talking on the mobile phone. Instead of finding a solution, they are creating yet another problem”. If you are driving and feeling drowsy, the advice is to pull over.

Our team at safe communities wish you all a safe week ahead – with a final reminder to follow the preventive advice being issued by the ANEPC and weather warnings by the IPMA in respect of Depression Martinho.

News:

Spain reduces alcohol limit for driving: experts say Portugal should follow suit

The Portuguese Society of Alcoholism praises the Spanish initiative to reduce the alcohol limit for driving from 0.5 to 0.2 grams per litre of blood.

The Portuguese Society of Alcoholism welcomed this Wednesday the start of the legislative process in Spain to limit alcohol consumption while driving to 0.2 grams per litre of blood, arguing that Portugal should follow this example to combat road accidents.

The Spanish parliament approved on Tuesday, in a first vote (not yet final), a proposal to reduce the maximum amount of alcohol currently permitted in drivers’ blood from 0.5 grams of alcohol per litre of blood to 0.2 grams.

According to the proposal, this tax will be applied to all drivers in Spain, regardless of their profession or the age of their driving license.

In the preamble of the PSOE proposal, it is stated that alcohol or drugs “are the main causes of road accidents worldwide” and that in countries such as Sweden and Norway, “world leaders in road safety”, the rate is already 0.2 grams per litre of blood, which is also recommended by international organisations, which understand that “this limit is equivalent to zero tolerance”.

Speaking to Lusa, the president of the Portuguese Society of Alcoholism (SPA), Joana Teixeira, considered the initiative “to be praised” and a “very important measure” in the fight against road accidents associated with alcohol consumption.

The expert argued that Portugal should adopt a similar policy, warning that “it is completely different” to have a blood alcohol level of 0.2 or 0.5 grams (g/l) in terms of the effects it has on the driver’s perception.

“Rates of 0.2 grams are normally associated with a slight feeling of euphoria, a slight reduction in inhibitions and a slight decrease in motor coordination, but when we talk about rates of 0.5, we already have a more pronounced euphoria”, he explained, considering that “there is a lack of awareness in this problem”.

Climate change signals hit record highs in 2024 and consequences “will be irreversible”

ONI report reveals that 2024 was the hottest year in the last 175 years, while the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere also reached unprecedented levels.

The main signs of climate change broke records last year, an international team of scientists from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed on Wednesday, warning that some of its consequences “will be irreversible for hundreds, if not thousands of years”.

“The clear signs of human-induced climate change reached new levels in 2024, and some of its consequences will be irreversible for hundreds, if not thousands of years,” reads a report published this Wednesday by the United Nations (UN) science agency.

Scientists put the long-term increase in global average temperature at between 1.34 and 1.41 degrees Celsius, compared to the reference period (1850-1900).

According to WMO experts, every additional fraction of a degree (in the global average temperature) increases the costs and risks for humanity.

2024 was the hottest year in the last 175 years

The report confirms that 2024 was the first year in which the global average temperature exceeded pre-industrial levels by 1.55°C, making it the hottest year on record in the past 175 years.

Furthermore, this estimate implies that the 1.5°C limit established by the international community as the maximum tolerable level of global warming has been exceeded and, beyond this limit, the consequences for humanity will be very serious and irreversible.

WMO scientists stressed that, despite everything, temperatures are “only a small part” of a much more complex situation, in which, for example, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has also reached levels unprecedented in the last 800,000 years.

The situation at the poles is also moving in a very worrying direction: the 18 lowest levels of sea ice in the Arctic have been recorded in the last 18 years, while the three lowest extents of sea ice in the Antarctic have occurred in the last three years.

Furthermore, glacier mass loss in the three-year period 2022-2024 was the largest in history.

The sea is getting warmer and warmer

Sea level rise — where 90% of the energy captured by greenhouse gases in the Earth system is stored — has also accelerated, increasing twice as fast as since satellite measurements began.

According to the report, ocean heat content in 2024 reached its highest level in the 65 years of observational records, and each of the last eight years has set a new record.

Thus, the rate of ocean warming over the last two decades (2005-2024) is more than double that recorded in the period 1960-2005.

In terms of temperatures, the last ten years have been the hottest on record, and each of the last eight years has set a new record for ocean warming.

Record temperatures in 2024 have been attributed to continued increases in greenhouse gas emissions – which cause global warming – and the transition from La Niña to El Niño, while factors such as changes in the solar cycle may also have contributed.

 

Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 12^th March 2025

Good morning. We start with the collision between a Portuguese-flagged cargo ship and an oil tanker in the North Sea which occurred on Monday. One day after the collision, fires on both ships remain active.

Investigations into the cause of the collision are underway after a White House official refused to rule out foul play amid questions about why the Solong cargo ship appeared not to slow down or change course before hitting the Stena Immaculate oil tanker, which was carrying cargo in the form of 220,000 barrels of jet fuel for the US military. There are reports that there was dense fog in the area early that morning, but even so the vessel’s radar would have shown the presence of the oil tanker. The cargo vessel is reported to have been travelling at 16 knots (30 km/h) just before colliding with the Stena Immaculate oil tanker which was stationary.

Although investigations continue, a 59-year-old man has been arrested after an oil tanker and a cargo ship collided in the North Sea on Monday, police have said. Humberside Police said the man had been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter in connection with the collision following searches for a missing crew member of the Solong.

Environmental experts said the jet fuel leaking from the 183-metre-long tanker was toxic to humans and animals. Simon Boxall, an oceanography scholar at the University of Southampton, said Jet A-1 fuel had “far greater toxicity” than crude oil and that “the impact on ocean life would be devastating”. The British government has not confirmed reports that the Solong was carrying sodium cyanide, a highly toxic chemical, when it hit the tanker although this has been denied by the owners. We await with interest the impact of the leakage on marine life and the results of the investigation into the cause of the accident.

Yesterday marked the 14^th anniversary of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami that left more than 22,000 people dead or missing, with over 27,000 people still displaced today. In a memorial ceremony held in the city of Fukushima, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he will pass down the lessons of the disaster to future generations and make Japan, one of the most disaster-prone countries globally, “the world’s foremost disaster prevention country.”

On March 11, 2011, a record 9.0-magnitude quake struck off the coast of Japan’s Tohoku region, triggering a tsunami with waves that reached a maximum height of 40.5 meters. Over 90% of the 15,900 deaths caused by the disaster were from drowning, and 2,520 people are still unaccounted for, according to the National Police Agency.

The tsunami caused the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, primarily the meltdowns of three of its reactors, the discharge of radioactive water in Fukushima and the associated evacuation zones affecting hundreds of thousands of residents. Many electrical generators ran out of fuel. The loss of electrical power halted cooling systems, causing heat to build up. The heat build-up caused the generation of hydrogen gas. Without ventilation, gas accumulated within the upper refuelling hall and eventually exploded causing the refuelling hall’s blast panels to be forcefully ejected from the structure. Residents within a 20 km radius of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant and a 10 km radius of the Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Plant were evacuated.

Also on 11^th March a moderate 5.3 Magnitude earthquake occurred 25 km south-southeast of Faial da Terra, in the Azores in the North Atlantic Ocean and was recorded at the stations of the Azores Archipelago Seismic Network. There were at least aftershocks ranged from 2.1 to magnitude 3.4 (Richter) and this later, according to the information available to date, did not cause any personal or material damage.

CIVISA researcher Rita Carmo told Lusa that events of this magnitude are common in the Azores archipelago. “Let’s say it’s common, but not as frequent as micro-earthquakes. The Azores region is a seismically active region, it’s normal for earthquakes to occur, in fact, we even have many micro-earthquakes frequently, but the truth is that these destructive earthquakes are also part of the history of the Azores. And since the settlement of the Azores, in the mid-15th century, there have been several earthquakes with sufficient magnitude to cause damage,” he explained. The inhabitants of the two islands, he recalled, “must be well aware of the self-protection measures and all the directions issued by the Regional Civil Protection and Fire Service of the Azores (SRPCBA)”.

These act as reminders that we should be prepared for earthquakes especially those of us living in areas such as Lisbon and the Algarve which are of higher risk. How to prepare for earthquakes and action to take during and after can be found here. https://www.safecommunitiesportugal.com/find-information/environment-and-weather/earthquake-tsunami/

Our team wishes everyone a safe and happy week ahead

News

IPMA Tsunami Forecasting Meeting – attended by international experts

At the beginning of March 2025, a meeting dedicated to discussing the problem of the tsunami forecasting took place at the IPMA.

This meeting is part of the activities of the Intergovernmental Coordination Group (ICG) of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) for the Northeast Atlantic, Mediterranean and the Connected Seas Tsunami Early Warning System (NEAMTWS).

The meeting was attended face-to-face by 15 experts in these fields, most of them belonging to the Tsunami Early Warning Centers (TSP – Tsunami Service Providers) from France, Italy, Greece and Portugal, with the online participation of several other experts from Spain, Turkey and Romania.

In particular, a new methodology of probable forecasting and its possible operationalization was discussed, having been agreed to carry out a testing phase to assess its operational potential, and the IPMA should develop work in this regard for the Northeast Atlantic area.

Recall that IPMA, under ICG/NEAMTWS, is one of the Tsunami Service Provider for the Northeast Atlantic, having been accredited in 2019 by the IOC.

Criteria for issuing weather warnings are not the same

The IPMA issues weather warnings for situations of strong winds, heavy precipitation, snowfall, thunderstorms, cold, heat, persistent fog and rough seas.

Some apparently contradictory information about meteorological records and their association with the degree of intensity, i.e., the level of meteorological warning, has raised doubts and even objections. In question, meteorological values ​​that, being higher in relation to others of the same climatic element (for example, wind), represent a lower risk (lower risk meteorological warning).

This is the case of the most significant wind values ​​recorded in the last week in the Madeira archipelago, which DIÁRIO reports in its edition this Tuesday, March 11. The news that the wind blew ‘yellow’ in Areeiro, due to the fact that a gust of 105 km/h was recorded, while in São Jorge a gust of 104 km/h justified an orange warning, gave rise to different interpretations.

Source DN Noticais 

X Outage on Monday affects many thousands of users including those in Portugal

Hours after a series of outages Monday that left X unavailable to thousands of users, Elon Musk claimed that the social media platform was being targeted in a “massive cyberattack.”

“We get attacked every day, but this was done with a lot of resources,” Musk claimed in a post. “Either a large, coordinated group and/or a country is involved. Tracing …”

Later on Monday, Musk said on Fox Business Network’s Kudlow that the attackers had “IP addresses originating in the Ukraine area” without going into detail on what this might mean.

Cybersecurity experts quickly pointed out, however, that this doesn’t necessarily mean that an attack originated in Ukraine. Security researcher Kevin Beaumont said on Bluesky that Musk’s claim is “missing a key fact — it was actually IPs from worldwide, not just Ukraine.”

Specifically, he said it was a Mirai variant botnet, which is made of compromised cameras. He said while he is not sure who is behind the attack, it “Smells of APTs — advanced persistent teenagers.”

Allan Liska of the cybersecurity firm Recorded Future, meanwhile, pointed out that even if “every IP address that hit Twitter today originated from Ukraine (doubtful), they were most likely compromised machines controlled by a botnet run by a third party that could be located anywhere in the world.”

Complaints about outages spiked Monday at 6 a.m. Eastern and again at 10 a.m, with more than 40,000 users reporting no access to the platform, according to the tracking website Downdetector.com. Around 4000 were users in Portugal. By afternoon, the reports had dropped to the low thousands.

A sustained outage that lasted at least an hour began at noon, with the heaviest disruptions occurring along the U.S. coasts.

Downdetector.com said that 56% of problems were reported for the X app, while 33% were reported for the website.

It’s not possible to definitively verify Musk’s claims without seeing technical data from X, and the likelihood of them releasing that is “pretty low,” said Nicholas Reese, an adjunct instructor at the Centre for Global Affairs in New York University’s School of Professional Studies and expert in cyber operations.

Bowel cancer is increasingly affecting young people

Patient association Europacolon is concerned about the increase in bowel cancers and low uptake of screening. The most recent national figures point to almost 7,500 diagnoses per year and 3,500 deaths. Experts also draw attention to the growing number of these tumours in younger people, especially men.

One of the main risk factors for bowel cancer continues to be age and the proof is that the overwhelming majority of diagnoses occur after the age of 50. However, in the medical community, there is notable concern when looking at younger people and observing an increase in cases in 20 years.

A sedentary lifestyle, a diet rich in processed foods, tobacco and alcohol help explain the widespread increase in the disease. In younger people, with the exception of cases of genetic origin, there are still no answers.

“We can admit that there are indeed changes in habits and exposure of intestinal cells that could lead to the development of these neoplasms at earlier ages,” says Flávio Videira, digestive clinical coordinator at IPO Porto.

“The studies that are being carried out do not yet have definitive data, but they indicate that the main cause is, in fact, the way we face life and the environments in which we move”, explains Vítor Neves, president of Europacolon.

The patient association Europacolon appeals to younger people not to underestimate symptoms and to doctors not to ignore statistics.

During the month of the fight against bowel cancer, Europacolon wants to raise awareness of the importance of screening – the search for hidden blood in feces – and criticizes the government.

National data for 2021 indicate an increase of almost 800 diagnoses compared to the previous year. More than 3,500 people died from the disease. Data from 2022, but from the World Health Organization, show an even more worrying scenario. 10,500 diagnoses and 4,800 deaths.

European centre warns that measles virus is circulating in several countries

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) warned today of a “considerable increase” in measles cases in the last year, indicating that transmission of the virus is circulating in several European countries.

Data from the monthly update on this contagious disease point to “continued transmission of measles in several EU/EEA [European Union and European Economic Area] countries, with a sharp increase in reported cases during 2024,” the ECDC said in a statement.

According to the data now released, between 1 February 2024 and 31 January 2025, a total of 32,265 people were diagnosed with measles, with Romania (27,568), Italy (1,097), Germany (637), Belgium (551) and Austria (542) presenting the highest number of cases across the EU/EEA.

During this period, Romania recorded 18 deaths attributed to measles and Ireland one death, the European Union agency added, warning that the continued transmission of the virus is due to “gaps in vaccination coverage against this preventable disease”.

According to the ECDC, which expects cases to rise next spring, eight out of 10 people diagnosed with measles in the EU/EEA in 2024 were unvaccinated.

Preventing measles outbreaks and protecting vulnerable populations requires that at least 95% of the eligible population receives two doses of the vaccine, the statement stressed, adding that vaccination levels in the EU/EEA still fall short of this target.

Provisional data from 2023 indicate that only four countries – Portugal, Hungary, Malta and Slovakia – have reached the coverage target for both doses of the vaccine.

Measles is an infection caused by a virus, characterized by fever, cough, conjunctivitis, runny nose and red spots on the skin.