Fire in Southern Portugal burns 52,000 acres

The fire is burning near Monchique in the southern Algarve region

Portugal Monchique fire wildfire
The map shows heat in Southern Portugal detected by a satellite August 8, 2018. Other areas that burned in previous days have cooled and were not seen by the satellite’s sensors. Click to enlarge.

A fire that started August 3 has burned 52, 000 acres (21,000 hectares) in the southern Algarve region of Portugal.

Below is an excerpt from an article at Geo.tv dated August 9, 2018:


“MONCHIQUE: Wildfires scorched across Portugal’s southern Algarve region on Wednesday, threatening more villages as the country’s prime minister warned the blaze could burn for days before being brought under control.

“Over 1,400 firefighters and soldiers were battling the blaze around the mountain spa town of Monchique in one of Europe’s top tourist destinations.

“They were backed up by 13 water-dropping aircraft that scooped water from the sea at nearby beach resorts to battle the flames which were scorching a path towards more villages.

“Sweltering temperatures and strong winds kindled blazes that have whipped across the region as the Europe-wide heatwave sent the mercury above 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) in some areas of Portugal at the weekend.”

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Author: Bill Gabbert

After working full time in wildland fire for 33 years, he continues to learn, and strives to be a Student of Fire.