It is a “particularly critical” moment: minister indicated the rivers that will be affected by the depression Marta

Sado, Tejo and Mondego are at the top of the concerns – but they are not the only ones on the list. There is also special concern about the Douro River.

The Minister of Environment and Energy warned this Friday of the “particularly critical” moment that the country lives, highlighting that it will especially affect the basins of Sado, Tagus and Mondego rivers.

Maria da Graça Carvalho was speaking to journalists after a meeting at the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), in Amadora, Lisbon, to take stock of the flood situation in Portugal.

The next depression, which arrives tonight, will enter Portugal in a region between Sines and Lisbon and will especially affect the Sado basinwhere Alcácer do Sal in particular is suffering from flooding, said the minister, explaining that the depression will later reach the Tagus river area, also in a flood situation, and another equally worrying river, the Mondego.

December and January were very rainy months, but APA did preventively discharges into dams to accommodate this water, the equivalent of the Portuguese consumption for a year (more than 700 cubic hectometers discharged in January), and only in this way was it possible to contain “major floods”.

In her statement to journalists, the minister said that Thursday was a worrying day on the Tagus River, due to discharges in Spanish dams, namely the large Spanish dam of Alcantara, which led to the flow rate almost doubling.

Today, it is already reduced (this afternoon the flow was 6,700 cubic meters per second in Almourol, when the critical point is 10,000). On Thursday it reached 9,000 cubic meters.

Maria da Graça Carvalho stated that everything is being done to ensure that the impact of the Marta depression is as small as possible, but admitted that More locations may need to be evacuated.

The president of APA, Pimenta Machado, also spoke about the “exceptional time” that the country lives and set as an example Algarve dams that never filled and that they are now flushing; and said that the Santa Clara dam, in southwest Alentejo, will also release releases. Monte da Rocha, in the Sado basin, will discharge.

Rivers on high alert

Civil Protection maintains the maximum alert due to the risk of flood in several rivers in mainland Portugal between today and Saturday, due to the Marta depression, indicated the national commander of Civil Protection.

The information was provided by Mário Silvestre at the press conference on the bad weather situation at the headquarters of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC), in Carnaxide, Oeiras, in the district of Lisbon.

The river Vouga “mainly affected” in the municipalities of Albergaria a Velha, Aveiro, Estarreja, Ílhavo, Mira, Murtosa, Ovar, Vagos and Cantanhede.

There is also a high risk on the river Águeda, in Águeda, and on the river Mondego, with an impact on Cantanhede, Coimbra, Condeixa a Nova, Figueira da Foz, Miranda do Corvo, Montemor o Velho and Soure.

I don’t laugh Tea, the hydrological pressure extends to Abrantes, Almeirim, Alpiarça, Azambuja, Benavente, Cartaxo, Chamusca, Constância, Coruche, Entroncamento, Gavião, Golegã, Mação, Salvaterra de Magos, Santarém, Vila Franca de Xira and Vila Nova da Barquinha.

The river Sorria remains at risk in Coruche and Benavente, while the river Sado affects Alcácer do Sal, Santiago do Cacém, Grândola, Alvito, Ourique and Ferreira do Alentejo.

At risk of flooding less serious, but still relevant, are the river Lima (Arcos de Valdevez, Ponte da Barca and Ponte de Lima), the Cávado (Braga, Barcelos, Vila Verde and Esposende), the Ave (Santo Tirso, Trofa and Vila Nova de Famalicão), the Douro (Gondomar, Porto, Vila Nova de Gaia, Lamego and Peso da Régua), the Tâmega (Chaves and Amarante), the Lis (Leiria) and the Guadiana (Alcoutim, Castro Marim and Vila Real de Santo António).

Mário Silvestre highlighted that the “main concerns at the moment have to do with the Douro Riverdue to, the river Mondego, whose level in the Aguieira dam “rose significantly”, and the river Tea, influenced by discharges from the Alcântara and Cedillo dams.

Marcelo worried

The President of the Republic expressed worried with the possibility of more floods caused by the return of heavy rain and discharges from Spanish and Portuguese dams and asked citizens to avoid taking risks.

“This is the big challenge, Today, be on time and take precautions where possible in the event that tomorrow, Saturday, there may be a rise in water levels. Let’s see how far this goes. Everything is prepared in terms of prevention, in terms of meeting the most urgent needs”, declared Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa to journalists, in Abrantes, in the district of Santarém.

The head of state called on citizens to avoid “crossing areas at risk in terms of flooding”, warning that it could soon rain again “in significant terms” and that there could be “the release of dams, whether Spanish or Portuguese – because some of them are at 100%, at 90 and so on”.