Some 70 people had gathered in the building in the town of Tondela when the fire broke out. More than 170 first responders were on the scene bringing people to safety.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/S. Azenha
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At least eight people were killed and dozens injured after a heater exploded and started a fire in a community center in northern Portugal late Saturday.
The fire broke out in the two-storey building in the town of Tondela, some 250 kilometers (150 miles) north of the Portuguese capital of Lisbon.
"Around 70 people were having dinner in the building when the fire broke out and we have a number of dead people as well as between 50 and 60 people injured," civil protection chief Paulo Santos told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
A heater exploded and started a fire late on Saturday at the packed premises Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/TVI
Local mayor Jose Gomes Jesus said people had gathered in the center for an amateur card tournament when a wood-burning stove inside the building exploded.
Witnesses said the fire spread rapidly through the building, causing many people to panic. Tondela fire service said they put the flames out after an hour.
More than 170 first responders and three helicopters were reportedly bringing people to safety. Many of the injured were brought to local hospitals suffering from burns and smoke inhalation.
Over 100 people were killed when some of the worst wildfires in Portugal’s history devastated the area around Tondela in October.
Deadly wildfires engulf Portugal and northwestern Spain (16.10.2017)
Portugal has endured a lethal 2017 with forest fires killing scores of people throughout the year. This week, deadly flames returned once more to scorch the Iberian earth.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/AP/L.R. Villar
Death in the heart of Portugal
Forest fires have ravaged northern and central Portugal in October, more than 40 people, including a 1-month-old infant. Fifty people have been wounded with 15 in a serious condition. Authorities expect the death toll to rise.
Image: picture-alliance/abaca/J. Henriques
A fatal combination
Portuguese civil defense has registered over 65 separate blazes in the central regions of Coimbra and Castela Branco and the northern region of Viseu. A government spokeswoman said higher-than-normal temperatures combined with a drought-stricken landscape had caused the fires.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/AP/A. Franca
The latest flaming terror
The recent outbreaks follow Portugal's deadliest forest fire in June that killed 64 people and injured more than 250. Portugal's national forest service has said that wildfires had scorched almost 200,000 hectares (530,00 acres) of land in 2017 alone.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/G. Cunha
Devastated and overwhelmed
Flames in several areas has overwhelmed firefighters, many of whom are finding it difficult to reach isolated areas in the countryside. The government has reportedly told residents to help the more than 5,800 firefighters combat the fires. Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa declared a state of emergency on Tuesday.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Cruz
Arson in the Spanish periphery
Separate fires in Spain killed four people in Galacia in northwestern Spain on Sunday. The region's autonomous government told a local news station arson had caused the fires and that were police already investiging multiple suspects. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy traveled to the region to examine the destruction on Monday.
