Portuguese officials on alert after wildfire gutted hotel and caused mass evacuations 

A wildfire that broke out south of Odemira in the Alentejo region in southern Portugal has been brought under control.

Portuguese officials have said monitoring the aftermath of a wildfire that forced the evacuation of 1,400 people and gutted a rural hotel to make sure it does not move south towards the Algarve is their “maximum priority".

Civil protection commander Vitor Vaz Pinto said the blaze that began in Odemira in the country’s Alentejo region on Saturday had been brought under control.

But a change in the direction of the wind had led to continuing concern about a reignition affecting the Serra de Monchique chain of mountains in the western part of Portugal’s Algarve region and heading southwards towards coastal tourist resorts packed with British and Irish holidaymakers.

Another Civil Protection commander, Andre Fernandes, said after colleagues confirmed the Odemira fire had been brought under control: “The strategy and the priorities on the ground are keeping the fire dominated.” 

He added: “With wind rotation to the north, in which the fire if it reactivates could enter the Monchique mountain range, this is the maximum priority.” 

Municipalities that make up parts of the district of the Algarve capital Faro remain on maximum or very high fire alert, according to the Portuguese Institute for the Ocean and Atmosphere, which operates and maintains state-owned scientific infrastructures like the Portuguese meteorological network.

A family from Andover in Hampshire was among those forced to flee their homes on Saturday because of the Odemira wildfire.

The Harvie-Watt family told the BBC how they evacuated their home in Sao Teotonio near Odemira as flames approached.

They doused the building in water in a bid to prevent it from being engulfed by flames and managed to keep it standing.

Others like Luisa Botelho, who owns one of Portugal’s top rural hotels in the area, were less lucky.

Criticism of authorities

She criticised authorities’ response to the drama after seeing her holiday getaway destroyed by flames.

Luisa, who co-owns the rural hotel she bought nearly ten years ago as a dilapidated farmhouse with her ex-husband Paulo Camacho, said: “Teima has been consumed by flames. This special place to which we dedicated all our lives now has a deep wound.

“We will be closed until this wound heals, until we are once again able to welcome our customers and friends as we always have.

“We will need everyone’s help so that we can shine again. We will provide updates soon.” 

She also attacked local authorities, claiming she was yet to receive a telephone call from the local mayor despite being a “tourist reference” in the area and alleging they had received no help from firefighters who she said were focusing on the nearby Enigma Hotel.

Firefighters also had to interrupt a wedding to tackle a fire at another country property further north near Mafra close to Sintra.

The couple who were getting married at the property later posed with the fire crews who had to put a temporary stop to their big day so they could put out the blaze.

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