Jorge Botelho expressed hope that the Monchique fire is on the right path to be controlled, but does not risk a prediction for its end. The president of AMAL – Algarve Intermunicipal Community refused to be an “incendiary” in the assessment of the actions of the Civil Protection, but showed himself to be burned for having said that 95% of the fire was dominated, for hours later to have returned to progress in strength.
The also president of the District Civil Protection Commission of Faro spoke to journalists after an extraordinary meeting of this body this Thursday. “We are hopeful that the situation will be resolved as soon as possible. What came out of this morning's operational briefing is that things are somehow moving in the right direction. But they are not resolved and so we have to be cautious», he said.
This caution is linked to what happened a few days ago. “On Monday, I made statements that portrayed the real situation at that time. But the conditions on the ground, the weather and the wind came to tell us all that things are only extinct when they actually are,” he added.
Jorge Botelho nevertheless made a point of praising «the coordination work of Civil Protection, its agents, GNR, INEM and Social Security». But, from the field, there are reports that not everything is going well, at the level of coordination, namely from Rosa Palma, which guarantees that there was a "lack of communication".
Jorge Botelho did not echo the criticism of the mayor of Silves and tried to send water to the boil. “I believe that, in the end, there are surveys to see how everything went and improve the system. And I don't want to function as an arsonist. The important thing here is to fight fires. I think everyone has the freedom to say what they think, but I trust the system for evaluating what happened," he said.
Also much criticized is the GNR, accused of forcibly removing people from their homes, sometimes considered excessive.
“In an emergency situation like this, what we can't have is dead. We realize that some of the people are upset. But when they return and see that their assets have been protected, they often even recognize the situation and that the measure was the best one”, defended Jorge Botelho.
Stressing that this "is a new experience in Civil Protection", he argued that "it is necessary to praise the work of the GNR, because as the days go by, situations become more difficult".
“The principle is to remove people for their own safety. If there is one situation or another that should be criticized, it should be looked at later. Right now, there is a justified purpose, which is to protect people», he believes.
As for a balance of the number of burnt houses, a task that the Civil Protection has already made known that it belongs to the Chambers, it will only be done "after the fire is extinguished".
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