Two Canadair water bombers have been sent by the European Union to the island of Madeira in Portugal, which is in the grip of a violent fire. The area burned during this disaster amounted to 4,397 hectares by midday Wednesday, an additional 545 hectares in 24 hours. The European Union announced on Thursday that it was sending two Canadair water bombers to the island of Madeira in Portugal, where a fire has been raging for a week. These two planes, specialized in fighting forest fires and wildfires, are due to arrive on site this Thursday from Spain, said Balazs Ujvari, a spokesperson for the European Commission. “These aircraft are already on their way and should reach Madeira in the coming hours,” he said during a press briefing.
The Commission “is closely monitoring the situation and stands ready to send additional resources if necessary,” he added. Portugal had asked its European partners for water bomber planes on Wednesday to fight this fire that threatens a forest classified as a world heritage site.
4,397 hectares burned
The surface area burned during this disaster amounted to 4,397 hectares on Wednesday at midday, or 545 additional hectares in 24 hours, the European Copernicus Observatory (EMS) informed on the social network X.
On Wednesday evening, the flames were still progressing on two fronts in very difficult to access areas of the central mountain range of this island very popular with foreign tourists, located off the coast of Morocco.
This article is originally published on europe1.fr
