This week we have heard of the dreadful flooding in central Europe, but we may have missed news of the wildfires raging in the central area of northern Portugal.
Wildfires have multiplied in Portugal
Over 5,000 firefighters are fighting more than 100 wildfires. After weeks of hot, windy weather, they take hold easily in the hilly terrain.
Tragically, seven people, including four firefighters, have died. Over 200,000 residents are in danger. The smoke carries far, making the air acrid to breathe.
A contact of East Anglia Bylines sent this message from the coastal city of Porto:
“Today the sky is still smoky, and there are small ash flakes in the air. Still big fires are in Portugal, also now around 40–50 km east of Porto. It is bad air; not nice for the eyes.”
Google Maps now marks ‘severe fire’ locations; currently there are dozens. BBC Weather shows the affected areas.
Specialist support from the EU
Amid the devastation, the Portuguese might take a crumb of comfort from knowing they belong to a club of countries who will send help. This often comes in the form of specialist equipment and expertise. Their government has asked the European Commission to initiate its Civil Protection Mechanism, so it mobilised eight firefighting planes, two each from Spain, France, Italy and Greece to help.
A Commissioner said, “The EU stands in full solidarity with Portugal. Our swift response … underscores the strength of European cooperation in times of crisis.”
The EU Civil Protection Mechanism was established in 2001 to strengthen cooperation when responding to disasters. It also includes a few non-EU members, but not the UK.
The climate crisis is deepening
There’s no doubt that climate breakdown is making natural disasters like floods, fires and storms more frequent worldwide. As Tomasz Oryński wrote for us this week:
“This will now be the lives of millions of people on this planet – more every year. It might not be floods, it could be drought, landslides, tornadoes, forest fires. These events will become more and more common.”
Those devastating floods are affecting much of central Europe, including Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and now Italy, and the emergency will continue for some time to come. The EU is employing their Galileo satellite to provide detailed information to the countries involved, and would normally provide major funding from its own reserves. (Last year the EU provided over €1 billion to help Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Greece, and France recover from natural disasters.)
But such has been the increase in these events – this is the second time this year the EU has come to Portugal’s help in fighting wildfires – that the call on this year’s emergency budget is exhausted. There is urgent debate going on as we write this article about ‘topping up’ the fund immediately, and talks are underway with the countries involved. Money and other support will be forthcoming.
We cannot exist without mutual help
But with Brexit, the UK left the EU to ‘go it alone’. To ‘take back control’. With climate breakdown, however, we can’t be in control. It’s far too big. Realistically, mitigation is all we can do.
And we’re mistaken if we think disasters won’t happen in the UK. In the 40°C heatwave of 2022, wildfires raged across Britain, including East London, where 19 homes were destroyed. There have been frequent floods in recent years. Last October Storm Babet resulted in seven fatalities and extensive flooding – including in East Anglia where some homeowners remain displaced.
We have excellent resources and highly trained personnel, but sometimes an emergency can be so great that reinforcements are needed.
Wouldn’t it be good to be in a mutually supportive alliance, who we could rely on during disasters? And to whose members we could offer the benefit of our emergency services if others required it? As Walter Scott said, “The race of mankind would perish did they cease to aid each other. We cannot exist without mutual help.”
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