The image above is from the webcam at this moment.
The dense column of smoke seen near Pico do Areeiro, one of the highest mountains on Madeira Island, has caused alarm among the population and authorities.
However, the Regional Operational Commander of Civil Protection, Marco Lobato, assured that the fire is not located in Pico do Areeiro, thus contradicting the general concern.
Video captured by João Rodrigues:
“We do not validate this information. The fire is not even close to Pico do Areeiro”, he stated, clarifying that the smoke visible in the area is coming from the flames that are in Fajã dos Cardos, in Curral das Freiras, and that are slowly progressing towards Boaventura. “Pico do Areeiro does not have any fire”, he reinforced.
Marco Lobato also explained that the position of the smoke may give the impression that the flames are on Pico do Areeiro, but in reality they are coming from an area located “on the other side of the mountain”. Civil Protection confirmed this information through aerial reconnaissance.
In any case, the Commander guarantees that the authorities are carrying out “active surveillance” of the incident, in order to understand which direction the fire will take, so that “intervention can then be carried out in areas where it is already possible to act by land means and, possibly, by air”.
“All of this will depend on the dynamics of the fire itself and what will happen now, as night falls, because temperatures will tend to drop and this could be a factor that will benefit the fight on this front”, he explained, reinforcing that, at the moment, “it is not possible to do anything else, just monitor”.
Regarding the active front in Ponta do Sol, where the helicopter was carrying out the last discharges before nightfall, the commander also highlighted that in that area the aerial operations are being carried out by land resources. “The helicopter carries out the discharges and then this same work is consolidated with the firefighters on site”, he stressed.