Portuguese wildfires merge in Coimbra district as crews defend Sabouga

Ignition and merger of the Coimbra fires

Two separate wildfires that started minutes apart in the Coimbra district merged on Saturday afternoon, putting rural homes in danger and forcing authorities to reinforce containment operations. The initial alert occurred at 13:35 in the locality of Pombeiro da Beira, located in the parish of Murganheira within the Arganil municipality. Six minutes later, at 13:41, a second wildfire was reported in the area of Lavegadas, in the parish of Sabouga within the municipality of Vila Nova de Poiares. As both blazes expanded in the early afternoon, the two fronts joined together into a single fire zone, advancing toward nearby residential areas and threatening rural communities.

Village threat and containment in Sabouga

The unified fire front moved directly toward the village of Sabouga, creating moments of distress for residents as flames approached domestic properties. Emergency authorities closely monitored the movement of the flames toward surrounding settlements as conditions evolved throughout the afternoon. Carlos Tavares, commander of the Sub-regional Command of the Coimbra Region, confirmed during the approach that several villages faced direct exposure to the blaze.

Right now, we have some villages at risk, with the fire hitting, and one of them is Sabouga.

Firefighters established protective perimeters around the houses, and Civil Protection authorities later reported that the immediate danger to the village had decreased. Vila Nova de Poiares Mayor Nuno Neves reported that all residential structures were defended and that no civilians were injured.

Fortunately, we managed to save the houses, which was our purpose. There are no injuries and no damage, and that is what should be noted after the moments of distress experienced in the village of Sabouga.

Deployment scale and frontline operations

The response across the Arganil and Vila Nova de Poiares sectors required a broad mobilization listed on the portal of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC). More than 600 firefighters deployed to the area, supported by 200 operational vehicles and 12 firefighting aircraft. Despite the containment achieved near Sabouga, the Arganil fire sector remained the primary focus of concern for commanders due to active fire activity. During the suppression efforts in Vila Nova de Poiares, an operative was struck by their own service vehicle. The firefighter sustained a bone fracture and was evacuated to the Coimbra University Hospital for medical care.

Separate transport accident in Santarém

In a separate incident in the Santarém district, four firefighters sustained injuries after their emergency vehicle went off the road near Coruche. The accident occurred while a crew from the Canha Volunteer Firefighters was returning from an active forest fire operation. One of the four firefighters sustained serious injuries and required emergency air transport by helicopter to a hospital facility. The other three crew members received treatment for injuries sustained when the rescue vehicle left the roadway.