“We have a situation that mobilizes us across the entire territory, because the effect of intense and prolonged precipitation is felt everywhere.” The statement was made by the Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, during his visit to Peso da Régua this Saturday, February 7th. The head of Government said that the country is focused on the immediate response, prevention and reconstruction of the damage caused by bad weather from a perspective extended to the entire national territory.
“We have a program that is currently specific to the municipalities that had the greatest impact of the Kristin depression and that are in a calamity situation, but obviously we are not going to deprotect, nor are we going to stop monitoring everything else that needs to be done throughout the national territory”, he told journalists, after visiting the city in the Vila Real district, which is on alert for floods due to the rise in the flow of the Douro River.
But, in addition to the floods, there are also losses from landslides, falling walls and road collapses in Douro municipalities that were left out of the extraordinary support announced by the Government and which have already asked the executive to re-evaluate the decision.
With the persistent and prolonged rain, there are some “areas that have a greater risk at certain times”, he said. “This is the case today especially in the Tagus Basin, on the Sado river, in particular in Alcácer do Sal, on the Mondego river, but always with all the most exposed areas, as is the case of the Douro river and in particular Peso da Régua”, said Luís Montenegro, who made the visit in heavy rain.
He stated that he found, on the ground, that “there is a coordination structure that works 24 hours a day”, with daily monitoring of incidents due to bad weather.
He highlighted that all the risk situations that are occurring in the country, such as the floods in the Tagus, Mondego or Sado basins, require an “immediate response”, highlighting that it is necessary to “warn the population, avoid excessive dangers” and “look to the future” and “prevent the coming days” in order to “be up to the task of responding to situations of greater pressure”.
“And we start and carry out the reconstruction of the country. At this moment it is not just the reconstruction of the central area, which is in fact the area that was most affected by the Kristin depression, but we currently need to extend a recovery perspective to the entire national territory”, he highlighted.
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