Sabugal, Portugal, Aug. 21, 2025 (Lusa) - The Sabugal Town Council has decided to ask the government to declare a state of calamity in the municipality to help the residents most affected by the fires.
The decision was taken at a town hall meeting held on Wednesday, at which a proposal was also presented to start surveying the damage and losses in the worst-hit parishes, "to define the terms under which support will be given to the residents and businesses most affected", the municipality said in a statement sent to the Lusa news agency.
The fire, which started on the 15th and spread to the municipalities of Almeida, Guarda (Guarda district) and Penamacor, the latter already in the Castelo Branco district, has already been declared out.
A source from the Beiras and Serra da Estrela Sub-regional Emergency and Civil Protection Command told the Lusa news agency that the fire entered the resolution phase at 02:00.
There are 367 operatives on the ground, supported by 86 vehicles, "working to consolidate and monitor some hot spots", said the same source.
The fire started in Aldeia de Santo António, near the centre of the municipality, and the alert was given at 14:41, according to the website of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC).
The flames eventually spread to different parts of the municipality in the district of Guarda and threatened several towns in the neighbouring municipalities of Almeida, Guarda and Penamacor.
This Wednesday, the municipality began surveying the damage and losses in the most affected parishes.
"A multidisciplinary team from the municipality has been set up which, in liaison with the parish presidents, is checking the most urgent needs, both human and in terms of animal welfare," announced Sabugal Town Hall in a statement sent to the Lusa news agency.
The municipal technicians are also working on "identifying and framing" the burnt areas, with the aim of "supporting and implementing measures to recover/minimise the damage, in conjunction with the measures that the government may decree".
LYM/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
