Pedrogao fire is 95 per cent under control, says Portugal's Civil protection

Record ID: 896507

  • Title: Pedrogao fire is 95 per cent under control, says Portugal's Civil protection
  • Date: 21st June 2017
  • Summary: PEDROGAO GRANDE, PORTUGAL, (JUNE 21, 2017) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PANORAMIC VIEW OF MOUNTAINS AND DAM WITH CLOUD OF SMOKE ABOVE VARIOUS OF VIEW OF HILLTOP VILLAGE AVELAR, PORTUGAL (JUNE 21, 2017) (REUTERS) CIVIL PROTECTION COMMANDER VITOR PINTO SITTING DOWN FOR NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) CIVIL PROTECTION COMMANDER, VITOR PINTO, SAYING: "At this moment we have 95 percent of fire perimeter under control and 5 percent is still active with a high risk potential." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) CIVIL PROTECTION COMMANDER, VITOR PINTO, SAYING: "I am optimistic and I hope we can say the fire is dominated soon but I can't say to you when it will happen because there are variables that we can't control. What I can assure you is that all forces in the field are motivated and coordinated and aware of their mission to do their work safely and that is what we want but during these situations there are unpredictable events and we need to be prepared to resolve them." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS
  • Embargoed: 5th July 2017 11:40
  • Keywords: Portugal Fire briefing forest
  • Location: PEDROGAO GRANDE AND AVELAR, PORTUGAL
  • City: PEDROGAO GRANDE AND AVELAR, PORTUGAL
  • Country: Portugal
  • Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Wildfires/Forest Fires
  • Reuters ID: LVA0016M81EMF
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:Portugal's deadliest fire is 95 per cent under control, Portugal's Civil Protection Commander Vitor Pinto said on Wednesday (June 21) in a news conference at the emergency services headquarters at Avelar.
    Pinto said the remaining 5 per cent of the Pedrogao fire which is still active poses a potential risk but he added he was optimistic about controlling the blaze although he wasn't able to say when the situation would be entirely under control.
    On Tuesday (June 20), Civil Protection said several other fires have started in region and there are now more than 2,000 firefighters involved in the efforts.
    The fire in the Pedrogao region, about 200 km (125 miles) northeast of capital Lisbon, spread rapidly after starting on Saturday (June 17), killing many people in their cars as they tried to flee the blaze.
    The disaster, now into its fifth day, also prompted Prime Minister Antonio Costa to question the emergency response system and also called the fire the biggest human tragedy in Portugal in living memory.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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