By Enyichukwu Enemanna
No fewer than 3,000 firefighters and 30 aircraft have been dispatched to control wildfires in Portugal which has seen 29 people, including 12 firefighters and 17 civilians fatally injured.
The European Union on Sunday activated its firefighting air fleet assistance programme, which allows member nations to share resources to help Portugal.
EU Crisis Commissioner, Janez Lenarcic in a statement, said Spain, which has also faced wildfires recently responded by mobilising two firefighting planes to send to its neighbour.
The EU has blamed climate change for increasing natural disasters in the continent, such as droughts and wildfires.
In June, 96 percent of Portugal, located in southern Europe was classified as being in either in “extreme” or “severe” drought.
The fires have caused authorities to increase a state of alert already in place. Portugal’s government declared a state of heightened alert on Saturday that will run through Friday.
The wildfires come as Portugal also battles a heatwave with temperatures expected up to 43 degrees Celsius.
The country has adopted restrictions barring public access to forests deemed to be at special risk, banned the use of farm machinery and outlawed fireworks
