Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 15th October 2025
Good afternoon. If you have been monitoring the weather forecasts over the last week, you will see that whereas Portugal has had generally fine weather, this is not the case with our neighbours Spain. Yesterday AEMET raised to a red level warning for torrential rain in the south of the province of Valencia, in effect until at least 15:00 (local time).
The best news is the announcement by Civil Protection is that no one is missing, a circumstance almost surprising given the magnitude of the storm and the images of the streets of several municipalities turned into flooded rivers. Despite this, 18 injuries have been reported, one of them seriously injured after falling, fracturing his hip, and being taken to the hospital. The rest received minor treatments. The Generalitat’s Fire Brigade responded to 340 calls between 17:30 on Sunday (Oct 12) and 7:00 (Oct 13). Thirty-one people were rescued, most of them in their cars on flooded roads.
The powerful DANA was an unprecedented event of torrential rain that broke historical records, for instance with 280 l/m2 in Mas de Barberans, Tarragona.
On the 10th October the Region of Murcia experienced a complicated day due to the heavy rainfall caused by DANA Alice, especially along the Cartagena coast, where up to 120 l/m2 accumulated in just a few hours. Due to this situation, 101 people were forced to evacuate from a campsite that was at risk of flooding, as well as residents of the Bahía Bella and La Algameca residential areas, who were also affected by accumulated rain.
We advise, therefore, those travelling to parts of Spain, especially areas that have a history of intense rain to check forecasts carefully before heading out. We publish heavy rain and storm warnings on this page and in more detail on our Facebook Group “Safe Communities Portugal Protection again Natural Hazards.
CP railways has opened an investigation, following “internal procedures”, to determine “possible causes and possible improvement actions” that led to Monday’s incident in which an Intercidades (Inter City) train lost one of its carriages midway through a journey between Lisbon and Faro.
CP in a statement said that “Passenger safety was not affected, as the trains are designed to brake and immobilize vehicles in these situations, as happened,” CP said. As for the passengers, they were “safely taken to the remaining carriages” and, “after checking all the carriages and their safety conditions, the train continued its journey to Faro”.
Publico stated: “There were no injuries, nor is the situation potentially very dangerous, as a broken coupling causes a rupture in the main brake line, bringing the train to an immediate stop. On all CP trains, the carriages are always connected by automatic brake lines. If the train accidentally splits (as was the case with the coupling break), both separate sections of the train stop automatically, regardless of the line’s gradient”. “Everything indicates that some maintenance failure led to the coupler’s failure, as CP has been having difficulty performing general overhauls on its carriages. Currently, one in five Intercidades carriages is parked in workshops awaiting maintenance or repairs”.
It is important that the investigation is completed quickly and thoroughly given the large number of passengers that travel daily on the Inter City trains throughout the mainland.
Lastly please remember that the fire risk remains very high in places so we much not be complacent when it comes to fire prevention. The ground is still very dry in some places and yesterday much of the mainland had a minimum relativity of under 30%. Remember a small spark can cause a very large fire. Follow the regulations in place.
Have a good week ahead
News:
CP opens investigation to “determine the causes” of “anomaly” that separated train carriage
In a clarification to SIC, CP confirmed the incident that occurred this Monday at “around 4 pm” indicating that the train in question “had an anomaly when leaving Grândola station”.
CP has opened an investigation, following “internal procedures”, to determine “possible causes and possible improvement actions” that led to Monday’s incident in which an Intercidades train lost one of its carriages midway through a journey between Lisbon and Faro.
In a clarification to SIC, CP confirmed the incident that occurred this Monday “around 4 pm” indicating that the train in question “had an anomaly when leaving Grândola station”.
The problem was caused by “a rupture in the coupling between two trains, which resulted in the train’s carriages separating.” According to the company, “there are no previous records of this failure occurring in the mechanical element that broke.”
“Passenger safety was not affected, as the trains are designed to brake and immobilize vehicles in these situations, as happened,” CP said.
As for the passengers, they were “safely taken to the remaining carriages” and, “after checking all the carriages and their safety conditions, the train continued its journey to Faro”.
As for the carriage that separated from the train, the company indicates that “it was rescued in Grândola with the help of a Medway locomotive”.
The company guarantees that “periodic maintenance of all rolling stock is scrupulously carried out by the company” and the inspection plan “is being carried out as planned”.
As reported this morning, the Aircraft and Railway Accident Prevention and Investigation Office has also opened an investigation to gather more information about the incident.
According to the newspaper Público, which broke the news this Tuesday, one in every five Intercidades carriages is stopped waiting for maintenance or repairs.
Theranostics: medicine’s latest investment in cancer diagnosis and treatment
It allows doctors to pinpoint the location of tumour cells and deliver radiation treatment to them to kill them. The Porto IPO was the country’s largest medical centre to invest in this technology, with encouraging results for patients.
It’s just a feeling, but exactly the one you’re looking for after years of cancer treatments. “I think my disease has practically disappeared with this treatment,” Albano Soares tells SIC.
“I’m much better. I didn’t eat, I didn’t sleep, I didn’t walk – I went through all those phases – and now I eat, I sleep, I breathe well and I’m much better. I can get dressed by myself and everything, and back then I couldn’t even do that.”
This is a successful case of prostate cancer resulting from a nuclear medicine therapeutic and diagnostic approach: theranostics. This is a highly personalized approach to the patient and the tumour. It’s only possible with highly qualified professionals and cutting-edge technology like this Gama Digital Camera. It’s been at the Porto IPO since July and is one of two in the entire country.
But not all cancer patients are suitable for this approach. For now, the radiopharmaceuticals prepared here at the Porto IPO are used as a second-line treatment for neuroendocrine tumours and as a last-line treatment for prostate tumours.
The Porto IPO’s investment in the theranostics field has already exceeded five million euros. It was the Portuguese unit that invested most heavily in this area. Last year, Porto’s nuclear medicine service performed approximately 16,000 procedures, 300 of which were therapeutic.
A flea infestation has affected several schools in Rabo de Peixe, including the Ribeira Grande Vocational School, Luísa Constantina School, and Rui Galvão de Carvalho School. In response, the municipality has hired a company to disinfect the schools and surrounding streets as a precautionary measure. According to Mayor Alexandre Gaudêncio, there have been no reports of the infestation spreading to residential areas or public roads.
In case you are not aware the French air traffic controllers have called off a three-day strike that threatened to disrupt European flights from, 7th – 10th October, a top union said on Saturday. We mention this because at least one online news organisation does not appear to be aware of this stating this afternoon that “the strike appears to be having little effect!”
Storm/Dana ALICE – Will cause very heavy and persistent downpours in areas of the eastern Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands in the coming days.
By analysing the land beneath the ice, the ice and comparing the results with satellite and database records, as well as geological information from aerial assessments, the geologists found 91 previously unknown volcanoes, ranging in height from 100 to 3,850 meters.
His typical customer, including many from the mainland, is looking for “a strong, older cheese,” but spicy cheeses aren’t just sitting on the shelves.
Once again Spain has been hardest hit by Gabrielle. Yesterday the Army UME emergencies unit has been activated in Ibiza due to a torrential rain storm Red level warnings in place. The Emergency Department sent an alert message via the EsAlert system to all mobile phones in Ibiza and Formentera, warning of the risk of flooding and urging the public to avoid travel and flood-prone areas, not to stay in basements and to go to upper floors in case of flooding.
On the other hand, there were 1,401 people welcomed into the National Support Network for Victims of Domestic Violence (RNAVVD), including 733 women, 643 children and 25 men .
Forecasters noted that Gabrielle’s wind strength was not expected to change significantly on Monday night, and the system could gradually weaken on Tuesday and Wednesday. The system was also expected to increase its forward speed over the next few hours. The NHC reported that Gabrielle would continue to impact the east coast of the United States, from North Carolina northwards, as well as Atlantic Canada, with large waves causing dangerous conditions and rip currents.
The Government of the Azores expressed great pleasure upon hearing the news about Ryanair’s interest in reopening its base in Ponta Delgada, on the island of São Miguel. The Azorean government welcomes Ryanair’s position and interest in reopening the base on São Miguel Island and is available to collaborate in developing the process, which is currently taking place within national government bodies.
José Nuno Moniz, the commander of the Ribeira Grande Volunteer Firefighters, emphasized that people should pay for rescues on unapproved trails. He noted that there are many approved trails on the island, making it difficult to understand why rescues on non-approved trails occur. He also highlighted the risks involved in such rescues, especially in adverse weather conditions.
This period of hot weather is expected to persist until Friday, with a sharp drop in temperatures expected over the weekend, according to the IPMA, to normal or slightly below normal values for the time of year, with a possible drop of 8 to 10 degrees in the maximum temperature in some places.
In the order, the Secretary of State for Internal Administration, Telmo Correia, authorizes the installation and operation of a video surveillance system, consisting of four cameras, “operated in such a way as to guarantee the effective safeguarding of privacy and security”.
Pico Mountain is very popular with tourists during peak season, and the climb can be done with a guide or independently, provided certain rules are followed to ensure visitor safety.
Between Spanish and Canadian military personnel, Portuguese and American military personnel from Lajes Base, Portuguese Navy personnel, and personnel from other entities, “between 350 and 400 people” will be directly involved in the exercise.
Turning from land to sea. Four months into the 2025 Beach Season, the National Maritime Authority has recorded 1,007 rescues, 3,561 first aid operations, and 16 fatalities on Portuguese beaches between May 1st and August 31st. of the fatalities. This is a very large number and most are preventable if people simply followed the warnings that are in place. We ask people to take care and use beach where there are lifeguards.
In Portugal, for example, adults with higher education demonstrated greater ease in understanding and analysing texts, achieving, on average, 36 points more than those with only secondary education and nearly 70 points more than those surveyed without completing the 12th grade.