Volunteers on motorcycles distribute cold drinks to firefighters

Andreia Carvalho da Silva has been traveling this part of the Alvão mountain range on a quad bike with cold drinks and food that she distributes to firefighters and other people fighting the fire that started on Saturday in Sirarelhos, Vila Real, and which is now under control, but not yet resolved.

"It's been a help. It's been very hot, as it can be felt today. Within the bad, we've managed to find some good parts: this unity of people," the 34-year-old independent photographer and videographer told Lusa news agency.

He was in Alentejo, but as soon as he heard about the fire in the Serra do Alvão he came to Vila Real.

“My mother has a house here, it’s the first house in the village of Mascoselo (…) I came all the way up there because it’s not possible to just watch on television and obviously we want to come and protect everything that is ours, our common home, our nature and even our homes”, he highlighted.

Andreia and other community volunteers joined forces with the scouts who opened the doors of the Regional Scouting Activities Camp in Mascoselo, where they began collecting donated goods on Monday.

Volunteers leave from there on motorbikes to distribute aid, but they also welcome those who need food or to cool off from the high temperatures experienced in this area.

"There was a great unity here, very quickly, from one moment to the next everything was set up and that was very important," said Andreia Carvalho da Silva.

While traveling on their motorcycles, these volunteers also monitor the fire's reactivation and raise the alarm.

“That is our biggest fear and that is why we are on guard,” he said.

Rui Dinis, a 23-year-old Air Force soldier from Gontães, was vacationing in the village. He also travels the area between Arrabães, Gontães, and Mascoselo on his scooter, delivering bottles of water, apples, and cookies to firefighters on the front lines.

"As I walk along the road in the area where the fire burned, I keep checking for any rekindling so I can call the fire department if necessary. This also helps keep the population calm and helps the firefighters, who don't have an easy job," said Rui Dinis.

This is not, he said, “the vacation I was imagining.”

The scouts' space is a kind of "rest area" for the operatives to eat and rest.

"We have plenty of shade, it's cooler here. We're here to help," said Raquel Ferreira, leader of Group 212, who explained that they prepare sandwiches, energy drinks, and water there.

These scouts were arriving from a trip to Rome (Italy), where they were participating in the Jubilee when they were called to help.

Andrea Carvalho da Silva highlighted the collaboration with Civil Protection, firefighters, and local residents who had cisterns, who "were crucial" in the first call when the fire started in the upper part of Mascoselo. "I think that first line of action was decisive," she noted.

The fire spread across the Alvão mountain range, approaching several villages such as Pena, Currais, Gontães, Vila Cova, Mascoselo and entering the municipality of Mondim de Basto.

"Fortunately, we were able to control the fire in the upper part of the village [Mascoselo]. Naturally, we have to lament our natural landscape and forest; we have cedars here that are almost centuries old. That's the great sadness that will remain, but as always, nature is always better than us and can surprise us and give us more opportunities," said Andreia Carvalho da Silva.