‘Fire devil’ breaks as deadly wildfires devastate Portugal

AMID a hellish enough fire season, a rare ‘fire devil’ phenomenon has been captured on film after forming in the flames devastating Portugal.

IT’S sort of like a tornado, made of fire. Composed of a core of ash, fuelled by wind and intense rising heat, it’s as rare as it is dangerously beautiful.

The fiery phenomenon known as a “fire devil” has been filmed in Portugal as the nation battles a string of wildfires and sky-high temperatures.

A “fire devil” or is a sort of fiery tornado, a whirlwind induced by fire. It is caused when flames and ash are caught up in a strong gust of wind and dust, and suck in burning debris and gas.

The phenomenon, leaping high into the air, was filmed by Portuguese broadcaster TVI on Saturday night in the town of Arganil.

Also known as a fire whirl the rare occurrence isn’t quite as intense as what’s known as a fire tornado. Those, while similar, are far more powerful and destructive.

Eleven active wild fires are currently raging in Portugal across six different fronts with high winds hampering efforts by about 1500 firefighters, 200 military personnel and countless locals to contain them, euronews reports.

During the European summer, 64 people died in fires in Portugal’s deadliest natural disaster in living memory.