the country’s battle plan to fight forest fires

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Video length: 3 mins.

France 2

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E.Pelletier, M.Cazaux, V.Barros, N.Lachaud, J.Dhib, Drone images: Alexandre VIEIRA – 4K Fly – France 2

France Televisions

A country sets an example in terms of fire prevention. This is Portugal. In 2017, 119 people were killed in gigantic fires. Since then, the country has been trying to prevent a new tragedy.

Giant fires, overwhelmed emergency services… In 2017, in central Portugal, 119 people lost their lives in their homes or trying to flee. The national drama was followed by a deep questioning. For six years, the country has radically changed its system by focusing on prevention. The number of forest fires has been halved. To better understand fires, a research center reproduces identically large fires on the ground or in a hangar.

Tackle anything that feeds the fire

In the villages of the interior of Portugal, affected by desertification, brush clearing has become vital. The country also resorts to ancestral methods such as recruiting shepherds and their goats who eat the brushwood. On their side, the inhabitants seem to find their account there. Portugal’s goal is to limit the spread of fires by attacking anything that feeds the fire.


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