Over 2,000 emergency personnel tackle wildfires in Portugal

More than 2,000 emergency personnel and around 20 aircraft are still, on Tuesday, tackling rural fires that have broken out in recent days on Portuguese territory, according to information published on the Civil Protection website.

By mid-afternoon, three incidents considered significant were still ongoing, the most worrying being the fire in Torre de Moncorvo, in the most northeast district of Bragança, which started on Saturday. At around 16 pm, more than 400 emergency personnel were on the ground, backed by over 140 vehicles and four aircraft.

According to Portuguese media RTP, the blaze still had one active front at the start of the afternoon. The local mayor, José Meneses, told the broadcaster that the authorities hoped to be able to "declare the fire under control" a few hours later and, consequently, "move into the mop-up phase". More than 2,000 hectares have already burned in Torre de Moncorvo since Saturday.

Another fire that continues to demand firefighters’ attention is the one in Arouca, in the northern coastal district of Aveiro, which broke out on Monday night. At 16 pm, more than 300 firefighters, around a hundred vehicles and two aircraft were deployed in the operational zone.

The fire, which is burning through scrubland, still had four active fronts this morning, according to Portuguese news channel SIC Notícias . This led Civil Protection to adopt preventive safety measures in some communities, in order to safeguard homes and lives.

In Santo Tirso, Porto's Metropolitan Area, around 200 personnel, supported by more than 60 vehicles and one aircraft, remained engaged in fighting the flames, according to Civil Protection. The fire, which started late on Monday afternoon, has already consumed more than 900 hectares.

All this is happening at a time when hot, dry weather persists across much of the country. The Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere has placed nine districts under orange warning until 18:00 this Tuesday, with the rest of mainland Portugal, except Lisbon, Setúbal and Faro, under yellow warning.

According to a public warning issued by the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection, "maximum temperatures above 40°C in several regions of the country" are expected, accompanied by low air humidity "in the generality" of the territory.

For these reasons, the northern and central inland regions, where temperatures are expected to be highest, are facing a very high to maximum risk of rural fire, with the authority urging the adoption of preventive measures.

Speaking this Tuesday after a meeting on the fire situation, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro warned that the country still has "weeks of heightened complexity" ahead, Portuguese media reported.

The head of government also stressed that Portugal is currently "under high risk, which places a duty of care on everyone" so as to reduce, as far as possible, the impact of the fires.

He went on to describe 2026 as "another tough year" in terms of forest fires, but insisted that the existing operational response is "the largest ever". According to government figures, there has so far this year been a "very significant reduction" in burnt area compared with 2025, "around four times" less.

Luís Montenegro also praised Luís Neves, the minister for internal administration who has been embroiled in controversy and who also attended Tuesday’s meeting at Civil Protection headquarters. In the prime minister’s view, the man in charge of tackling rural fires has carried out "an absolutely extraordinary job", with a "strong sense of responsibility" in coordinating resources.