Case Study

Catastrophic Forest Fires in Caramulo Mountains

From 20 August to 2 September 2013 the Caramulo Mountains in central Portugal experienced a series of three large and devastating forest fire events that caused a total burned area of about 9415.5 ha and 6 casualties. The Caramulo fires had overwhelming ecological, social and economic consequences that will be felt for several years. They were the result of a complex combination of variables from human factors to adverse meteorological and topographic conditions. This case study will address these variables of the Caramulo fires, which lead to environmental disaster.

Filed under Keywords:

forest fires, Portugal, fire detection, fire monitoring, pre-conditions to fire