Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 15th March 2023
Good morning – As anyone in business will know, understanding risk and mitigating risk is essential for the economic livelihood of the business. The same goes in understanding the risk of the occurrence and impact of natural disasters, such as rural fires and earthquakes for example – except the stakes are much higher, i.e. the risk of damage to your home, personal injury to you and your family and even worse!
At Safe Communities we spend considerable time identifying risks that can result in rural fires. Last year for instance just prior to the Gambelas fire in Faro, the weather conditions were extreme in the Algarve with the Fire Hazard (FWI) indicating critical levels above that of the fires of 2017, a point we made on our Facebook posts two days beforehand!
If more people had understood the risk would your activities and actions to prepare for possible fires have changed? Would you have done anything different on those days in reducing the risk of a fire reaching your home – last minute land cleaning, checking the gutters, moving the wood store further away from the house for instance, or oblivious to the risk have spent the time with a round of golf instead? It is a sobering thought!
Over the next few months I can assure you that risk awareness and risk communication will become one of the most common terms regarding preparedness for rural fires. We will try to explain risk in an understandable way and count on your support in getting such key messages across. It is essential that such information is shared, people are prepared and adopt self-protection measures.
Risk does not only concern rural fires, but earthquakes and tsunamis and other disasters that may occur. As we have said before we cannot prevent catastrophes, such as earthquakes but we can reduce the effects, because we knew the risks and took the appropriation action beforehand and during the event itself.
A few days ago the GNR Gouveia, identified a 43-year-old man for the crime of forest fire, in the municipality of Seia.
Following a report the GNR went to the scene, having found out that the fire originated from an unauthorized burn, where the suspect, when trying to clear the area of bushes, did not adapt the necessary security measures, resulting in the fire burning an area of undergrowth and pine forest of approximately 0.08 ha, putting the surrounding forest area at risk. This case has been referred to the courts.
This again illustrates the importance of registering the fire in the case of the burning of cut and piled waste or as in this case seeking authorisation to undertake and extensive burn. Even one registered/authorised it is important to follow the safety precautions. If you do not then you can expect to be prosecuted.
A reminder that the cleaning of land to 50 metres surround your property (the main building) not the perimeter, for those living in rural areas need to be completed by 30th April 2023. If you have neighbouring land that is overgrown within 50 metres of your property then this needs to be cleaned by the owner of that land. If the neighbour cannot be located, or refuses to clean then this should be reported.
Our team at Safe Communities wishes you a safe week ahead.
News
Illegal unloading of livestock effluent by livestock farmers
The GNR, through the Leiria Territorial Command, detected an illegal discharging of effluent by livestock farmers, on March 9, in the town of Ortigosa, Leiria municipality
Through a report, SEPNA elements detected a discharge of livestock effluent into the soil without any sort of treatment, coming from a livestock farm, using a submersible pump,
Due to the prompt intervention of the GNR, the effluent discharged did not reach the adjacent water lines, since, upon arrival at the site, the infraction was ceased after the power supply to the submersible pump had been disconnected.
This action resulted in the identification of livestock exploitation. A contra-ordination process was opened and the case handed over to the Portuguese Environment Agency, punishable with a fine of up to 144 thousand euros.
The Republican National Guard, through the Nature and Environmental Protection Service (SEPNA), has environmental and animal protection as a daily concern. To this end, the SOS Environment and Territorial Line (808 200 520) can be used permanently for reporting violations or clearing up questions.
Crackdown on criminal network that produced and distributed methamphetamine in Europe
With the support of Eurojust and Europol, judicial and law enforcement authorities in the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania and Slovakia have taken down an organised crime group (OCG) responsible for the production and distribution of at least 4.7 tonnes of methamphetamine in Europe. During a joint action, 16 suspects were arrested and over 3.3 million tablets containing raw material for the production of the drug were seized.
According to the investigation, the perpetrators used a Romanian company to purchase the precursors (raw materials) and incorporate them into two pharmaceutical products, 50 and 120 milligram tablets of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. They used a formula that allowed them to quickly extract these precursors afterwards for the production of methamphetamine in clandestine laboratories. One of the suspects was partner and director of this company.
The tablets produced in Romania were shipped to companies in several European countries that purchased them without having a marketing authorisation in those countries. The tablets did not reach their declared destination, but were sent to various locations in Poland. From there, the shipments were split into smaller quantities and delivered to the Czech Republic and Slovakia, where they were distributed to clandestine laboratories.
Using the ‘Czech method’ of producing methamphetamine in clandestine laboratories, approximately 0.70 kg of methamphetamine was obtained from one kilogram of ephedrine/pseudoephedrine hydrochloride.
Between January 2021 and February 2023, the members of the criminal group allegedly organised the transport and delivery of 168,788,870 tablets containing ephedrine and pseudoephedrine (approximately 6.7 tonnes of ephedrine hydrochloride), from which a total quantity of at least 4.7 tonnes of methamphetamine could be produced.
COMMENT
The number of people using methamphetamine in Europe is considerable and one hopes that this will have some impact. Excellent work and collaboration by all the security forces involved.
Some of these are quite alarming accusing the receiver of the email of watching on-line child pornography or that the person owes a debt of some nature. If you do receive these the first thing is not to panic and pay-up. Why? Because the sending has no evidence of any alleged wrong-doing and it is simply a scam, some computer generated at random.
This Wednesday, doctors start a two-day strike to demand that their careers and salary tables be valued, at a time when unions and the government are in negotiations, but still without an agreement after several inconclusive meetings.
The respective Regional Emergency and Civil Protection Command (CREPC) has programmed, in partnership with the Civil Protection Services and Agents of the region, a pioneering set of initiatives to mark the event, whose climax will take place this Wednesday, March 1st. There will be a number of events celebrating this important day and we will post photos on our Facebook page.
The 50 metres to be cleaned (not cleared completely) is measured from the building itself not the perimeter wall. This means if there is neighbouring land that is overgrown closer to your property than 50 metres it is the responsibility of the owner to clean it. This is one reason why good neighbourly relationships are important especially is small villages where your neighbour may have many relatives in the, if you are concerned that the neighbour is not cleaning the land and this poses a fire risk try and speak with the neighbour so the land is cleaned, which is in the interests of the neighbour concerned, to avoid enforcement action being taken by the GNR.
“In a year when we are starting to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 25th of April, we are also with this symbolic process of transformation making a digital revolution, the digital revolution at the service of citizens and at the service of being a more inclusive society that it has the ability to tear down walls that cannot exist”, defended Ana Mendes Godinho.
The PSP explains that, through the Departments of Weapons and Explosives (DAE) and Criminal Investigation/Cybercrime Nucleus and the Special Police Unit/Centre for Inactivation of Explosive Devices and Underground Security, a “systematic analysis of the “clear ” and “dark web” (the so-called ‘clear web’ is the Internet for public and general use, while the ‘dark web’ is the part of the Internet that works based on the anonymity of users and the concealment of communication channels, being used for clandestine or illicit purposes) to identify and promote the removal of content about the use of high-risk chemical products and toxic gases resulting from their use, contained both on ‘sites’ and ‘online’ forums”.
On Monday the Directorate-General for Health issued a health warning concerning poor air quality. with an increase in concentrations of inhalable particles of natural origin in the air affecting, namely, the regions of Alentejo, Algarve and the interior of the Centre Region. Thus, and as long as this phenomenon continues, DGS advised that the general population should limit outdoor physical activity and exposure to risk factors such as tobacco smoke and contact with irritating products with special precautions for children and those who are vulnerable.
It is important that neighbouring land, if within 50 metres of your house is also cleaned, so now is the time to have a friendly chat with your neighbour. In March checks will be undertaken by the GNR particularly in high risk areas so it is best to be prepared rather than leave to the last minute.
“The activation of this procedure will allow a much faster and more effective response to particularly serious situations that may have a direct impact on the population,” say sources from the Ministry of the Interior.