The five Madeiran Volunteer Firefighters (BVM) were part of the team of 140 firefighters that Portugal sent to help fight the fires in Canada. After the mission, Paulo Nóbrega, Paulo Figueira, Daniel Silva, Leandro Coelho and João Freitas, all Madeiran firefighters, return home.
According to the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC), the reception of the Portuguese contingent is scheduled for this Thursday night, which will take place at the Military Terminal of Figo Maduro, Lisbon, at 10:15 pm, which will include five Madeiran firefighters.
The Portuguese mission was led by the 2nd Regional Commander of Emergency and Civil Protection of the North, Armando Silva, and operated in Lebel-sur-Quévillion, in the Province of Quebec, one of the most affected by the fires.
The National Joint Operational Force (FOCON) sent to Canada includes five BVM firefighters, whose mission was to help Canadian firefighters support and fight forest fires in the country.
FOCON, made up of 140 operatives from the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC), from the Special Civil Protection Force (FEPC) from ANEPC, from the Emergency Protection and Socorro Unit (UEPS) from the GNR, from the Conservation Institute of Nature and Forests (ICNF), members of the fire departments of the Central Region and the Autonomous Region of Madeira, and the National Institute of Medical Emergencies (INEM), left Lisbon on 14 June.
Portugal’s help stemmed from the request for international assistance to fight forest fires that the Canadian authorities made through the Civil Protection Mechanism of the European Union.