“The ‘Estragos’ channel is an initiative of the City Council with the support of Tekever [a drone manufacturer], where we want all people and institutions to be able to register their damage,” Gonçalo Lopes told journalists at the Leiria Fire Department, where the municipality has set up its operations centre.

The mayor appealed to “all people, when they are able and without taking risks,” to photograph the damage to their homes and buildings, especially, and send it to the platform.

According to the mayor, that company has already carried out "reconnaissance flights in many areas" of the city, but will continue "this work, so that it is useful," not only for the work of the municipality, but above all for the people affected, in the requests for assistance that will be necessary in the context of reconstruction.

However, the City Council has created the email address reerguerleiria@cm-leiria.pt for individuals and companies wishing to donate goods to obtain information.

“We are living through moments in which the Portuguese people are being extremely supportive, for which we are very grateful. We have many requests, but we also have, fortunately, many people and companies wanting to help,” he stated.

Gonçalo Lopes added that the municipality, with 130,000 inhabitants, currently has “45,000 buildings without electricity,” acknowledging that the “pace is slow” for restoration.

The situation necessitates “an additional request for mutual aid,” so the municipality is reinforcing the “generator collection campaign” to place them in “the largest number of vital spaces, namely schools,” the priority in terms of recovering public property, he stressed.

The D. Dinis school, in the municipal seat, Maceira and Colmeias, are the one that is in the worst condition; all the others are also in bad shape, but these three will be at the top,” the mayor clarified.

Meanwhile, the municipality is activating community support structures in the parishes.

“These structures, strategically distributed throughout the territory, provide support to the community, some of them equipped with generators or in the process of being connected, allowing them to ensure, whenever possible, basic conditions such as showers, mobile phone charging and the collection of essential food items,” according to a press release.

The initiative aims to strengthen local response capacity, in coordination with the parish councils, Civil Protection agents and other entities, “guaranteeing access to essential services”.

The municipality is asking for the cooperation of residents, "both through the responsible use of these spaces and through the donation of food items, which will be sent to support those most in need."