The Algarve Report Wednesday 6th November 2024
by Mike Evans
Good day to you all in the Algarve. As we all read about the terrible floods that have caused a massive death toll in the Spanish towns of Valencia and to a lesser extent Barcelona, for us here in the Algarve we can be grateful for the amount of rain we have received over the past week. According to data from the latest weekly reservoir bulletin from the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), the recent rains have increased the storage levels of two dams located in the Sotavento region of the Algarve.
During the period from October 31st to November 4th (Monday), the amount of water increased by around 2% in the Odeleite dam and 1% in the Beliche dam.
Regarding the remaining reservoirs in the region, no changes were recorded in the last week.
Data this Monday shows the Algarve dams had the following storage levels: Funcho was at 35% of its capacity; Odelouca at 32%; Odeleite at 30%; Beliche at 24%; Arade at 17%; and Bravura at 13%. All of the dams are still at a critical level but hopefully further rainfall will help to increase the amount of water available.
Now a look at some of the stories from across the region in the past week.
BODY FOUND FLOATING NEAR OLHÃO RIVERSIDE AREA
The body of a 77 year old man was found floating by a member of the public, near the riverside area of Olhão, on Saturday.
The National Maritime Authority have said that the causes of the occurrence are as yet unknown, and that the case is being investigated by the Judicial Police.
According to the National Maritime Authority, the alert was given by a member of the public on Saturday, November 2, when he spotted the body in the river. Emergency teams from the Olhão Municipal Fire Department and the INEM Emergency and Resuscitation Medical Vehicle (VMER) arrived swiftly on the scene, and began resuscitation, but were unable to reverse the situation.
Members of the local command of the Maritime Police of Olhão were also on scene, along with members of the Judicial Police, who began the investigation process.
The death was declared at the scene by the VMER doctor and, after contact with the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Judicial Police carried out the necessary investigations, the body was transported to the National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences in Faro.
The Maritime Police Psychology Office has been activated and is providing support to the victim’s family.
BANK WARNS OF NEW SMS SCAM, TARGETING ACCESS TO ACCOUNTS
In a new fraud scheme that is spreading rapidly, Creditor Agrícola has publicly warned its customers about an SMS scam that directly targets access to their bank accounts.
This is a fraudulent message that appears to be sent by the bank itself and includes a dangerous link. By clicking on it, users risk having their bank details exposed and losing access to the balance in their accounts.
“We are warning you about fraudulent SMS messages that misuses the name Crédito Agrícola with a malicious link. Do not click or provide your CA Online/Mobile access codes,” warns the bank in a message sent to its customers. The warning is clear: if you receive a message from “Crédito Agrícola” with a link, regardless of the content, it is recommended not to click it.
These fraudulent messages, also known as phishing , take advantage of the common use of SMS to fool customers into believing that it is a legitimate communication from their bank. The aim is to trick users into entering their online banking login details on a fake page that replicates the real Crédito Agrícola website. Once the credentials are entered, the scammers can access the victim’s account, make transfers and empty the balance, causing damage that, in many cases, is difficult to reverse.
To prevent fraud of this type, the bank recommends that all customers always verify the sender of messages and avoid clicking on links included in unsolicited communications. If in doubt, the best option is to contact the bank’s support line directly, or visit a branch to clarify any message that may seem suspicious.
SMS phishing is a scam technique that is increasingly used by cybercriminals, given the trust that users place in text messaging. It is therefore essential to be aware of suspicious signs, such as unknown links, an urgency to click and content that requests access or personal data.
The recommendation is simple but effective: do not click on suspicious links and never provide confidential information without being absolutely sure that the communication is legitimate. This way, you can prevent these ingenious schemes from resulting in significant losses, protecting not only your personal data but also your financial assets.
MARITIME POLICE ARREST 4 DRUG TRAFFICKERS WHO RAMMED THEIR VESSEL
The Navy and the National Maritime Authority detected two boats suspected of carrying out drug trafficking activities this morning, in international waters off the south coast of Portugal.
The boats were pursued by the Portuguese authorities, when one of the suspect boats deliberately rammed the Navy vessel, causing a collision and injuring a soldier and two suspected drug traffickers, neither of whom were injured severely.
All the injured were rescued from the patrol vessel involved in the operation, by a Portuguese Air Force helicopter.
According to the Navy statement, a speedboat was seized and the four suspects arrested for being involved in drug trafficking.
Since the beginning of 2023, joint actions by the Navy and the National Maritime Authority, to combat drug trafficking, have involved the arrest of 111 people and seizure of 42 high-speed vessels, with more than 33 tons of narcotics on-board.
TWO MEN ACCUSED OF KILLING OWNER OF CAKE FACTORY IN ALBUFEIRA
Two men, aged 40 and 42, will be tried in court after being accused by the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the crime of qualified murder of a 66-year-old man in September 2019, who was the owner of a cake factory in Albufeira. One of the accused, aged 40, was arrested last April and has been in pre-trial detention since then.
According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, which charged the two men through the Albufeira Department of Investigation and Criminal Action, at the beginning of September 2019, “during the night, the accused accessed the interior of the factory and upon seeing the victim, they beat him, in particular, on the face and neck” and, “using a grey adhesive tape, they tied his feet, his hands, covered his mouth and suffocated him”.
The victim died from external compression of the neck. The men stole €16,000 and several objects and before fleeing.
IBERIAN PACT – BIG STEP TO REINFORCE WATER SITUATION IN THE ALGARVE
The president of the Algarve Intermunicipal Community (AMAL) has considered that the water commitments signed last week between Portugal and Spain “are an important step to guarantee” the reinforcement of water supply in the region. “We are very pleased that, within the scope of this cross-border agreement, the 30 hectometres for water intake in Pomarão have been validated, as foreseen in the Water Efficiency Plan”, António Miguel Pina told Lusa agency.
The agreements for water management of flows in the Guadiana and Tagus between the governments of Portugal and Spain were formalised during the 35th Luso-Spanish Summit, which took place in Faro.
Asked whether the minimum monthly flow for the Guadiana River in the Pomarão section will be sufficient to reinforce and maintain part of the water resources in the Algarve, António Miguel Pina claimed to have no technical knowledge that would allow him to make an assessment. “This is an important measure that allows for a significant reinforcement of our water sources, as we had already foreseen in the Water Efficiency Plan for the Algarve within the scope of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR)”, he highlighted.
According to the president of the association of municipalities in the district of Faro, which makes up the 16 municipalities in the Algarve, “it is another project that is almost ready to come to fruition”. “We just need to launch the work, as well as the desalination plant and, with these two, we have a significant reinforcement of our water sources”, pointed out the mayor of Olhão.
For the mayor, even so, “it is necessary to assess whether these new sources associated with the reduction of losses and reuse are sufficient, in a much unknown scenario, due to climate change”.
The understanding between the two countries provides for a commitment to a daily flow in the Tagus and a monthly flow regime in the Guadiana River, in the Pomarão section, to guarantee the good condition of the estuary and the equitable distribution of flows available for use by both States.
The Joint Declaration of the 35th Portuguese-Spanish Summit says that the agreement “concerning the guiding principles for the establishment of a daily flow rate on the Tagus River, from the [Spanish] Cedilho dam” aims to “maintain circulating flows”.
The joint statement also confirms the agreements already announced to regularise abstractions in Alqueva by farmers from both countries, under which Spanish users will start paying Portugal for the water withdrawn, with the same conditions imposed on the Portuguese side.
TAVIRA CITY COUNCIL TO CUT POOL AND GARDEN WATER SUPPLY
Tavira City Council is cutting the water supply to customers with metres for garden watering and swimming pool maintenance, to reduce overall municipal urban consumption by 10% by the end of the year. Speaking to the Lusa agency, the administrator of the municipal company Tavira Verde, the entity that manages the public water supply in this Algarve municipality, said that “the cut began to be implemented this week, as part of the fight against drought in the Algarve”.
Antonio Ramos justified the cut in supply to pool and garden metres, due to the fact that customers “had not reduced consumption by 70%, as had been requested by the company”.
“We told [customers] that they could only consume 30%, but as there was no expected reduction, we moved forward with this measure to try to reach the end of the year with a total reduction of around 10%”, he highlighted.
The administrator of Tavira Verde acknowledged that “there was an effort by all residents” to save water, but “it was not enough”. The municipality, he also said, is committed to complying with the 10% reduction in relation to 2023, decreed by the Government for urban consumption, admitting that “it will be difficult to achieve this target by the end of the year”.
“We are only experiencing an overall reduction of 7%, which forces us to adopt measures, in the last two months, to reduce consumption in public and private spaces, which we estimate will be a reduction of 2%”, he highlighted.
Antonio Ramos considered that the cut in supply for garden irrigation and swimming pool maintenance “will not have a major impact due to the weather conditions, given that the season is more humid and with some rain”.
Along with cutting off the supply to the second metres, the municipal corporation is also reducing the pressure in the water pipes during the daily period between 0 am and 6 am, the official revealed.
“Between midnight and 6am we reduce the pressure to very low values and during the day, we maintain a controlled normal pressure, so that water reaches the entire population,” he said.
Until the next time Stay Safe…..