The fire that hit the municipality of Oliveira do Hospital destroyed at least four homes, hit several agricultural farms and consumed around five thousand hectares, said the mayor, José Francisco Rolo, this Monday.

"We have two houses completely destroyed in the parish of Avô and two partially destroyed, one in the parish of Vila Pouca da Beira and another in Aldeia das Dez," he lamented.

Speaking to Lusa, the mayor stressed that the damage and losses are still being assessed on the ground, and said he was already aware that several farms had been affected.

"We have other situations where people have lost their agricultural outbuildings and farm equipment. Meadows are destroyed, and ponds and water supplies for animals are lost," he added.

According to José Francisco Rolo, the municipality is working on three fronts, the first being security, which is being coordinated by the Civil Protection Office to verify security conditions on the ground.

"We are talking about checking the absorption of municipal roads, broken cables, risks of falling trees, risks of landslides and landslides," he added.

Alongside security, the assessment of people's psychological well-being and the assessment of their material losses are carried out in parallel.

"We've involved parish presidents here, with coordination from the Social Action Office. We'll survey the damages and losses, parish by parish, to understand and respond to needs," he said.

The mayor also told Lusa that among the parishes most affected by the flames are Aldeia das Dez, Avô, Santo Ovaia and Vila Pouca da Beira, Alvoco das Várzeas, Penalva de Alva and São Sebastião da Feira, Lourosa and Nogueira do Cravo (Vendas de Galizes and Vilela).

"According to an estimate, which is still being updated, we believe that five thousand hectares have burned," he said.

The municipality of Oliveira do Hospital has 88 localities distributed across 16 parishes or parish unions.

One of the fronts of the Arganil fire, which broke out in the parish of Piódão, advanced to Oliveira do Hospital on Wednesday.

At the time, the mayor spoke of"chaos" and a lack of resources.

Mainland Portugal has been affected by multiple rural fires since July, particularly in the North and Central regions, in a context of high temperatures that led to the declaration of a state of alert since August 2.

On Sunday, the Minister of Internal Administration, Maria Lúcia Amaral, announced that the alert situation due to the heightened risk of fire was extended until midnight on Tuesday.

The alert situation, which began on August 2, had already been renewed until midnight on Sunday, now remaining in effect for another 48 hours.

The fires caused two deaths, including a firefighter, and several injuries, most of which were not serious, and totally or partially destroyed first and second homes, as well as agricultural and livestock farms and forest areas.

According to provisional official data, as of August 18, 185,753 hectares had burned in the country, more than the area burned in the entire year of 2024.