The third landslide in about three weeks occurred last night in the area of the Chapel of Our Lady of Life, in Fajã do Mar, significantly worsening the instability of the slope and the risk associated with the building. This information was confirmed by the Mayor of Calheta, Doroteia Leça, who acknowledges that the property is now in a highly vulnerable situation.
According to the mayor, the situation had already been monitored in coordination with the Regional Secretariat for Infrastructure and the Regional Secretariat for Tourism, Environment and Culture, and a technical study was planned to assess the slope and develop a consolidation project. “A study by LREC was scheduled to assess the consolidation of the escarpment and the costs of the intervention, but the truth is that events ended up unfolding rapidly,” she stated.
After the first collapse, two more incidents were recorded, the last one during the night, leaving the chapel “in a very exposed area and currently blocked off.” “The instability of the terrain is very high. It’s practically all earth underneath, which makes everything quite uncertain,” he stressed.
Given the increased risk, it was decided to preemptively remove the items inside the chapel, in an action coordinated with the entity responsible for the religious space. “The paintings, images, and saints will be removed and handed over to the Regional Secretariat for safekeeping,” the statement added.
Regarding the possibility of the building collapsing, the mayor admitted that the scenario is worrying, adding that there is uncertainty about the condition of the foundations. “We don’t know exactly what the foundation of the chapel is like, and there is no visible solid rock in that area,” she said moments ago during the contact, stressing that technicians are on site assessing the escarpment.
Access to the site is restricted while the necessary technical assessments are underway to determine the measures to be taken.
The newspaper has already contacted the Regional Government to obtain further clarification, given that this is a public maritime domain area.