Portugal wildfires continue to burn near Algarve

Aerial view of current Portugal wildfire from space — The view of the wildfire in Portugal from space. Image: European Union, Copernicus Sentinel-2 /Wikimedia Commons

Wildfires began in Portugal on Saturday, now spreading towards popular Algarve tourist destination as 1,000 firefighters tackle the blazes

Portugal is the latest European country to be hit with wildfires – after a sweltering heatwave swept through the country last week – prompting the evacuation of more than 1,400 locals and tourists as firefighters and 16 water-bombing aircraft tackle the blazes.

The wildfires began on Saturday, in the municipality of Odemir, around 110km from the popular tourist destination of Algarve, but have now spread south towards the tourist hotspot. According to authorities, more than 120 municipalities in Portugal are at maximum risk of wildfires.

In the centre of Portugal, parts of the motorway were closed between Lisbon and Porto as other major fires continued to burn, as a total of 19 villages, four tourist accommodations and a camping site were evacuated.

The forests in Pedrogao Grande area in Portugal during wildfires — Over 6,700 hectares of land have been destroyed in Portugal since the wildfires began on Saturday. Image: Shutterstock

The current wildfire is so large that it can be seen from space – as well as the huge cloud of smoke generated from it – which was captured in an image taken by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellites on 7 August.

There are two active fronts of the Portugal wildfires, with one projected to hit Monchique – a mountainous area with lush, green forests in the Algarve’s countryside, according to the regional commander of the emergency and civil protection authority, Jose Ribeiro.

Since Saturday, around 6,700 hectares of land have been destroyed in Portugal, and the country has recorded its hottest temperature this year on Saturday – 46.6ºC – in the city of Santarem.

The mayor of Odemir, Helder Guerreiro, described the current situation as ‘critical, difficult, and complex’ – with the blaze able to spread further due to a combination of extreme temperatures and strong winds.

The wildfires in Portugal follow the spate of Greece wildfires last month across several islands, which caused tens of thousands of people to evacuate their homes and tourists to abandon holidays – as well as the Canadian wildfires in June which diminished air quality in the country and swept huge plumes of smoke toward the US.