Portugal suffers worst wild fire disaster in 23 years

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, September 19, 2003

Portugal suffers worst wild fire disaster in 23 years

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Portugal suffered the worst wild fire disaster in 23 years this year, with up to 400,000 hectares of woods being destroyed, 19 people killed and an economic loss of 1.37 billion euros, the General Direction of Forestry said Thursday.

Among the burnt woodland, 22,000 hectares belong to protected zones, marking the worst fire attack on protected areas in 10 years. From 1998 to 2000, wild fires caused a yearly ruin of 10,000 hectares of woods.

Forest fires have been particularly fierce this year due to a surge in temperatures. In August, the Portuguese government declared more than 10 provinces in a state of "public disaster." Despite strenuous fire-combating efforts, the country has yet to rein in the rampant fires.

On Thursday, the government added Lisbon, the capital area, and the Beja province to the "public disaster" list, calling for joint efforts between the cental and local governments to counter the aftermath of the fire disaster.

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