Azores Situation Report Wednesday April 26th 2023

Air Force rescues woman from sailing boat 

The Air Force announced that it had rescued, during the afternoon of Sunday, April 23rd, a 31-year-old woman, of French nationality, who was on board a sailboat in need of urgent health care.

Video Here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53ZqqBRpuqk&t=9s

An EH-101 Merlin helicopter, from Squadron 751 – “Pumas” in Permanent Detachment in the Azores, was activated in order to carry out the rescue 203 km from Lajes.

The sailboat crew member was successfully recovered and later transported to a hospital, after receiving the first health care while still on board the helicopter by the military nurse.

The Lajes Search and Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC) was involved in this operation, in conjunction with the Ponta Delgada Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), of the Navy.

Government of the Azores inaugurates the pedestrian route of Ribeira da Agualva.

The Regional Secretary for Tourism, Mobility and Infrastructure, Berta Cabral, inaugurated, this Monday, the pedestrian trail “Walks of Agualva – On the Route of History”, in Praia da Vitória, Terceira Island, winning project under the Participatory Budget of the Autonomous Region of the Azores 2019.

For the Regional Secretary for Tourism, the footpaths of the Azores are iconic, and their landscapes constitute a significant part of the identity of the nine islands. They are an excellent way to explore the islands in depth and to experience a more direct contact with nature.

“The Azores are the perfect destination to experience throughout the year and on all islands, as they offer nature, adventure, and a rich history, combined with a very diverse built heritage. All this leverage contributes to the economic sustainability and social sustainability that our Region needs”, he underlined.

Berta Cabral made a point of recalling that the new PEMTA (Strategic Marketing Plan for Tourism of the Azores 2030) arose precisely from the need to safeguard “the cultural, historical and environmental dimension, in addition to the differentiated products of each of the nine islands in the promotion of the destination Azores”.

 “The Azores, it is never too much to mention, are a sustainable destination at an economic, environmental and social level. The Azores are a destination of nature”.

“The Azores already have the conditions to have tourism all year round and on all the islands, but we intend, with the new PEMTA, to consolidate our destination, which is recognized and awarded nationally and internationally”, emphasized Berta Cabral, for whom the archipelago has “differentiated products, all related to nature, with outdoor initiatives, which blossomed in the post-pandemic”.

The Regional Secretary for Tourism, Mobility and Infrastructure reinforced that the Azores cannot sell what they do not have or what they are not: “we have to sell our exuberant nature, capable of providing extraordinary and unique experiences and which arise because our people do make this possible”.

Trail Run Real Priolo with 750 participants. 

The third edition of the Trail Run Real Priolo, which will take place on the 29th in the municipality of Nordeste, has around 750 participants, the highest number ever, revealed the organization.

At a press conference at the Ponta do Sossego viewpoint, in the Northeast, Marco Moura, vice-president of the local council, said that registrations are already closed and that compared to 2022 there is an increase of 200 participants.

The organization of the race has the support of Centro Desportivo e Recreativo do Nordeste, in partnership with the Clube Desportivo e Cultural Juventude Ilha Verde and the Athletics Association of São Miguel.

At the time, it was revealed that the fourth edition of the competition, in 2024, will take place on April 27th.

 

Azores Situation Report Wednesday 19th April 2023  

Air Force rescues missing young woman in a kayak race in the Azores. 

A 16-year-old girl was rescued by the Portuguese Air Force (FAP), in Angra do Heroísmo, in the Azores, after being reported missing, “during a kayak test”, the organization revealed today in a press release.

According to the Air Force, the rescue, which took place on Saturday at 6:27 pm local time, on Terceira Island, “was ensured by the alert crew from the Azores via an EH-101 Merlin helicopter that arrived at the location of the searches at 18:10, after the alert of the disappearance of the young woman was given”.

“After being located and recovered, the young woman, who showed slight signs of hypothermia, was taken to Air Base No. 4, in Lajes, where an ambulance was waiting that transported her to a hospital unit”, said the FAP.

The operation “was activated by the Lajes Air Search and Rescue Coordination Centre and coordinated by the Ponta Delgada Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre”.

The Portuguese Air Force has assigned “a sea search and rescue area of ​​5,816,562 km², equivalent to more than half of the European territory, representing the second largest area of ​​responsibility in the North Atlantic”.´

Pretrial detention for robbery suspect in Ponta Delgada 

A man was held in preventive detention for being suspected of committing several crimes of aggravated theft, which occurred in the city of Ponta Delgada.

According to a statement from the Regional Command of the Azores of the PSP, last Tuesday, a 23-year-old man was arrested, with “a criminal record, strongly indicted for the practice of several crimes of aggravated theft, which occurred in Ponta Delgada, as a result of the result of analysis and treatment of the various signs that have been collected within the scope of various investigations taking place at the Ponta Delgada EIC”.

 PSP investigators developed a set of steps that allowed the “collection of evidence that unequivocally points this suspect as the author of three qualified thefts that he carried out inside commercial establishments”.

 The PSP also says that the “suspect acted alone, during the night, selecting establishments located in places with no movement of people. He entered establishments by breaking into doors and windows and acted exclusively with the aim of stealing monetary amounts”.

 In view of the danger that the defendant represented of continuing to commit crimes, the PSP decided “for his arrest using the procedural modality of out of flagrante delicto issued by the Police Authority”.

 The Ponta Delgada Criminal Investigation Squadron also adds that this defendant is suspected of committing other crimes of the same nature, so “investigations will continue in order to determine his, eventual, criminal responsibility”.

Azorean government defends “fair investment” of 20ME in the new school in Rabo de Peixe 

The President of the Government of the Azores praised the quality of the new Integrated Basic School of Rabo de Peixe, a “fair investment” of 20 million euros, and warned that it was necessary to monitor the “absenteeism” of school assistants in the region.

“There are 48 rooms in an area of ​​more than five thousand square meters of intervention and which had a budget that exceeded 20 million euros. It is a good structure and will help teachers with a teaching vocation and students with a learning vocation to find a qualified environment”, stated José Manuel Bolieiro.

 

Azores Situation Report Wednesday April 12th 2023

Region will put an end to the mandatory use of the mask in health services and homes. 

Following the decision of the Government of the Republic, the Regional Government will also determine the end of the mandatory use of the mask.

Man rescued in Porto das Capelas. 

A 42-year-old man suffered an accidental fall on a rocky area on Sunday, while walking next to the port of Capelas, he was rescued with trauma to his arm and leg and taken to hospital.

As stated by the National Maritime Authority in a statement, the alert was received at 1:30 pm, reporting the fall of a person and elements of the Maritime Police of Ponta Delgada and the Volunteer Firefighters of Ponta Delgada were immediately called to the scene.

At the scene, it was found that the man had trauma to one of the upper limbs and one of the lower limbs, having been stabilized and rescued by the wide-angle team of the Ponta Delgada Firefighters, who later transported him to the hospital.

 Azores distinguished with ‘5 Star Award’ in 11 categories. 

Award that aims to “evaluate and recognize the best that is done from north to south of Portugal” allowed the Azores to distinguish themselves in 11 different categories.

Competing among more than 900 brands, the Azores collected a total of 11 awards in the 6th edition of the Five Star Regions Award, being among the 116 brands that managed to “prove their excellence and win the award”, thanks to the evaluations made by 436 thousand consumers.

Thus, as disclosed by the published information, the Azores distinguished themselves in the “Crafts” category with basketry work, as well as in the “Traditional cuisine” category, with the typical Cozido das Furnas.

In the “Beaches” category, it was Praia do Fogo, in Ribeira Quente, that stole the attention of consumers, while in the “Reserves/landscapes/dams” category, Lagoa das Sete Cidades was awarded, also making room for the Mountain do Pico to achieve a Five Star Award in the “Mountains/Mountains” category.

With regard to the “Natural Product Stores” category, Bioforma received this award, as well as CEMPA – Centro Empresarial dos Açores, in the “Business Center” category. In the “Real Estate” area, the company CompraCasa Ponta Delgada was the most prominent in the Azores.

In the “Nature Tourism” category, highlight goes to Furnas Lake Forest Living, as well as to Supléxio Handmade Burger and Taberna Açor in the categories “Handmade hamburgers” and “Restaurants – Traditional cuisine”, respectively.

The objective of this award is to “evaluate and recognize the best that is done from north to south of Portugal”, adds official information, awarding regional icons “such as beaches, villages and towns, monuments or traditional cuisine, in addition to evaluating regional brands and reward those that stand out for their quality”.

Portuguese series “Rabo de Peixe” premieres in May on Netflix

The Portuguese series “Rabo de Peixe” will arrive on Netflix in May, the streaming platform announced, without specifying the day.

“Rabo de Peixe”, directed by Augusto Fraga and Patrícia Sequeira, was one of the ten winning projects in the contest promoted by the Netflix platform with the Instituto do Cinema e do Audiovisual (ICA), for screenwriters, launched in 2020, which had as its purpose support Portuguese audiovisual production in the context of the covid-19 pandemic.

Produced by Ukbar Filmes, “Rabo de Peixe” is the second Portuguese series for Netflix made entirely in Portugal, after “Glória”, by Tiago Guedes, produced by SPi and premiered last November.

“Inspired (very freely) by a real event, ‘Rabo de Peixe’ tells the fictional story of four friends who see their lives change with the arrival of a ton of cocaine on the coast of the small Azorean village Rabo de Peixe. The series is a ‘thriller’ with touches of sarcastic humor and a story based on hope, dreams, friendship, love and the sea that promises to conquer and enrapture the Portuguese public”, described Netflix, in a statement.

The cast is headed by José Condessa, Helena Caldeira, Rodrigo Tomás, André Leitão and Kelly Bailey, with the participation of Maria João Bastos, Pepê Rapazote, Albano Jerónimo and Afonso Pimentel.

“Rabo de Peixe” will also be the first fiction production signed by Augusto Fraga, who has worked mainly in advertising, together with Patrícia Sequeira, author of films such as “Snu” and “Bem Bom”.

“It is an enormous pride to be able to show the Azores to the world, telling an incredible story in one of the most special places on the planet. This is a series of pure entertainment and adrenaline, but at the same time, a reflection on the fortune and fatality of the human condition. Being an Azorean myself, I am very happy to bring this adventure to the Netflix screens”, said Augusto Fraga.

 

Azores Situation Report Wednesday 5th April 2023

by Christopher Noble

New head of the Armed Forces promises to “do everything” to supervise the sea in the Azores. 

The new head of the General Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMGFA), Nunes da Fonseca, promised to “do everything” to supervise the sea in the Azores, while the president of the Regional Government asked for means to protect marine areas.

“Obviously, the Armada has well-defined and well-staggered missions on the ground, according to its capabilities. We will honour this commitment [to protect the sea]. And we are going to do everything we can to continue fulfilling this mission, which is very important”, said Nunes da Fonseca.

The general was speaking at the headquarters of the Presidency of the Regional Government, in Ponta Delgada, after an audience with the leader of the Azorean executive (PSD/CDS-PP/PPM), José Manuel Bolieiro.

In early February, the Government of the Republic proposed the appointment of General Nunes da Fonseca as CEMGFA, with effect from March 1, 2023.

Nunes da Fonseca recalled that the protection of the sea is an “inherent responsibility to the activity of the Armed Forces” and reiterated the “availability” to support the region in search and rescue and civil protection missions.

“I expressed the availability of the Armed Forces to continue to serve within the limits of their capabilities, with rationality and balance, the populations of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, fulfilling not only military missions, but also other important missions in the archipelago”, he declared.

The president of the Regional Government, José Manuel Bolieiro, praised the “link between the Armed Forces and the Azorean people”, exemplifying with the aid in supplying the island of Flores during the month of March or the support to the population of the island of São Jorge during the crisis seismo-volcanic in 2022.

Emphasizing the “strategic importance of the Azores in the national context”, Bolieiro warned of the need for means for marine protection.

“Faced with the new challenges, with regard to new technologies and the protection of our sea, the new protected marine reserve areas or even the size of our Exclusive Economic Zone, there is also this expectation that the means, all of them, whether level of the Army, Navy or Air Force, to be able to monitor the availability”, he stressed.

On Monday, the President of the Government of the Azores announced the creation of an interdepartmental commission with the aim of issuing “fundamental” political guidelines that will lead to the final phase of the network of marine protected areas in the archipelago.

Several commercial spaces in Ponta Delgada target of thefts 

Supermarkets located in Arrifes, Capelas, Livramento, São Sebastião and São Vicente Ferreira were “attacked” yesterday at dawn.

Five commercial spaces, mostly supermarkets, in the municipality of Ponta Delgada were the target of theft or attempted theft, in the early hours of Thursday.

As confirmed by Açoriano Oriental with a source from the Regional Command of the PSP of the Azores, the incidents were recorded in Arrifes, Capelas, Livramento, São Vicente Ferreira and São Sebastião.

Some commercial spaces, such as a supermarket located in Vila Faia, parish of Livramento, were vandalized, with the intention of theft. In this case, the theft was actually consummated, with the theft of an automatic tobacco machine.

The PSP adds that it was called to the locations and is investigating what happened.

Some of the commercial spaces were equipped with video surveillance circuits, which can help the investigation and be an added value for the authorities to reach possible suspects for the criminal acts.