In three days, the Regional Civil Protection Service has registered 7 fires. Most of them in the Ribeira Brava and Ponta do Sol area.
In a press statement, the Regional Civil Protection Service informs that, since the beginning of the hot weather warning issued by the IPMA, on the 4th of October, the “Integrated Communications Centre of the Regional Command for Relief Operations (CIC CROS) has registered 7 fire outbreaks, in the municipalities of Ribeira Brava, Ponta do Sol, Câmara de Lobos and Machico, leading to the commitment of 84 operatives from the Fire Brigades of the Autonomous Region of Madeira and the Forest Police, supported by 19 vehicles and helicopter team.
The SRPC points out that the greatest fire hazard so far was the one that was started in the early hours of the 4th of October in the Trompica area, which was finally extinguished today at 09:45 am.
Firefighting teams comprised of 20 operatives from the Mixed Firefighters of Ribeira Brava and Ponta do Sol, 10 elements of the Heliborne Brigade, 2 Forest Police, 5 firefighting vehicles, and helicopter support.
At the moment, a fire is active in Furna and 10 elements of the Heliborne Team, 8 firefighters from Ribeira Brava and Ponta do Sol, 2 Forest Police, 5 Combat Vehicles, and 1 drone team from the Planning, Operations, and Communications Division are engaged in carrying out surveillance work.
Finally, the institute led by António Nunes highlights that, within the scope of the Operational Plan for Rural Fire Fighting (POCIF), there are 11 rural firefighting teams (ECIR) and 1 expanded attack team (EATA) permanently carrying out patrol and surveillance actions in the mountains of the Region, with 9 more ECIR’s in prevention, 1 EATA, 1 Logistics Team to Support the Fight and 12 forest intervention teams assigned to the Institute of Forests and Nature Conservation and GNR.
A further report states that the cause of the Trompica fire is arson as authorities discovered lit candles during the night of Tuesday in a forest area surrounded by bundles of brushwood. The Judiciary Police is already investigating the evidence.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
