A British family who were holidaying in Portugal have described fleeing from the “Armageddon” wildfires.
A huge blaze erupted over the weekend, razing thousands of hectares of forest in southern Portugal close to popular tourist destinations in the Algarve.
Miranda Harvie-Watt and her family had to evacuate when the fire came close to their property in São Teotónio.
Speaking to the BBC, the 52-year-old said: “It was like Armageddon, I’ve never seen anything like it.
“Our home is still standing which is incredible as the fires are all around us but so far so good.”
Mrs Harvie-Watt, her husband Mark, their daughter and two sons evacuated after winds drew the fire dangerously close to their property, eventually ending up in a hotel in Setúbal, further north.
The Hampshire-based family praised the emergency services’ efforts to control the blazes amid strong winds.
Firefighters said on Wednesday that the fires were now under control though authorities said firefighters would remain on the ground as a precaution.
The wildfire started on Saturday, but high temperatures and strong winds hampered efforts by more than 1,000 firefighters and water-dousing planes to extinguish the flames, which destroyed some 8,400 hectares of woodland.
It forced the evacuation of about 1,400 people, most of whom have returned home.
Authorities said water-dousing planes and bulldozers would be used to prevent the spread of the fire.
Southern European countries have been grappling with record-breaking temperatures during the peak tourist season, prompting authorities to warn of health risks.
It comes after July was confirmed as being by far the Earth’s hottest month ever recorded.
The global average temperature reached 16.95C - beating the previous record set in 2019 by a substantial 0.33C.
