Portugal declares 'state of calamity' as wildfires rage out of control

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00:00As flames lash houses and consume surrounding vegetation,

00:04residents are trying to control the fires with the tools they have on hand.

00:09Here in São Pedro do Sul, a local farmer wields a hosepipe

00:13to protect his property and livestock from the inferno.

00:17The firefighters didn't come here.

00:19They're spread out in the area and they can't be everywhere.

00:24It is the worst wildfire event in years for the country

00:27and has prompted the Prime Minister to declare a state of calamity

00:31in the hardest hit areas.

00:35It's for those who have no home, no shelter, no accommodation

00:39for the next few days, to have access to the most basic daily necessities

00:44so that we can be operationally and financially agile.

00:52More than 5,000 firefighters have been mobilised

00:55with 30 aircrafts and support supplied from France, Greece, Spain and Italy.

01:00Away from the active fronts, homes had been gutted and wildlife decimated,

01:05with more than 15,000 hectares scorched,

01:08according to the European Copernicus Satellite Service.

01:11European officials were quick to point out that these tragedies

01:14are fast becoming the norm.

01:16Europe is the fastest warming continent globally

01:22and is particularly vulnerable to extreme weather events

01:25like the one we are discussing today.

01:28We cannot return to a safer past.

01:31We cannot afford a year off.

01:34On Wednesday, the World Meteorological Agency

01:37also sounded a red alert for the planet,

01:40saying greenhouse gas concentrations are at record levels

01:43and that global temperatures are set to increase.

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