Depression “Ingrid”: Red Alerts for Snow, Schools Closed, Roads Shut Down
Schools adn roads are closed in dozens of municipalities this Friday, January 23rd, due too the passage of the Ingrid depression through mainland Portugal. Rain,wind,strong waves,and the forecast of snowfall at unusually low altitudes,with ice accumulation,have already caused hundreds of incidents across the country.
Between 4 pm on Thursday, January 22nd, and 5 pm on Friday, January 23rd, 722 incidents related to the adverse weather situation affecting mainland Portugal were recorded, according to official data from the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC).The most affected sub-regions were Coimbra (89 incidents), the Metropolitan Area of Porto (83 incidents) and Greater Lisbon (71 incidents).
Regarding the main types of incidents recorded, the fall of trees (238), cleaning of roads (195), the fall of structures (117), floods (89) and landslides (83) stood out. There are two displaced people registered in Alcobaça, another two in Cartaxo and three in Cascais. 2476 operatives, supported by 1042 vehicles, were involved in responding to these incidents.
The Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) issued several warnings and placed the districts of Braga, Porto, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real and Viseu under red alert (the most serious on a scale of three) from midnight on Friday. Faced with this scenario,Civil Protection placed almost the entire national mainland territory in a special readiness state of level 3.
This level 3 (the scale ranges from 1 to 4, with 4 being the highest) has been in effect since 4 pm on Thursday and until 11:59 pm on Saturday, and applies to all territory on the mainland “with the exception of Central and Lower Alentejo”.
No distrito de Bragança, nos concelhos de Macedo de Cavaleiros, Vinhais, Mogadouro e Carrazeda de Ansiães, as escolas também encerraram devido às condições adversas provocadas pela queda de neve.
Entretanto, o Agrupamento de Escolas Miguel Torga, em Sabrosa, ainda no distrito de Vila Real, avisou que caso se verifiquem dificuldades significativas de circulação nas infra-estruturas rodoviárias, os transportes escolares para as aldeias do concelho poderão ser suspensos, por razões de segurança.
Em Viseu, foram três os municípios a encerrar as escolas durante todo o dia: Resende, Cinfães e Castro Daire.A neve por ali já começou a cair, durante a noite. No mesmo distrito, as Câmaras de Tondela, Vouzela, São Pedro do Sul e Tabuaço decidiram encerrar as escolas durante a tarde. “A segurança das nossas crianças,jovens e de toda a comunidade educativa é a nossa prioridade”,sublinhou a autarquia de Tondela,em comunicado.
Já a Câmara de Gouveia, no distrito da Guarda, decidiu encerrar os estabelecimentos de ensino do concelho só no período da tarde. Os transportes escolares também funcionaram apenas no período da manhã. A Associação de Futebol da Guarda (AFG) decidiu adiar os jogos dos escalões de formação previstos para o fim-de-semana por causa do agravamento das condições meteorológicas no distrito.
Estradas e linhas cortadas
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A Estrada Municipal 1030, que faz a ligação entre Cinfães e Castro Daire, no distrito de Viseu, está cortada desde as 7h30 devido à queda de neve. Já a auto-estrada 24 (A24) encontra-se cortada ao trânsito entre os nós de fortunho,vila Real,e Vila pouca de Aguiar,por causa da neve,mantendo-se,no distrito,também fechado o Itinerário Principal 4 (IP4) na serra do Marão.
Também a estrada regional 311 em Salto, Montalegre, se encontrava cortada devido a um camião que se atravessou na via.Segundo a autarca do município, Fátima Fernandes, um nevão “à moda antiga” mobilizou dezenas de operacionais e 15 viaturas, com a missão de assegurar a limpeza e a circulação nas estradas do concelho.
Power Outages in Portugal Due to Adverse Weather Conditions (January 23, 2026)
The electrical grid in Portugal has been impacted by adverse weather conditions affecting the North and Central regions, notably the districts of Braga, Leiria, and Porto.As of 12:00 PM today, approximately 20,000 customers were affected by power outages. This data is based on a statement from E-Redes, the Portuguese electricity distribution company.
E-Redes Response & Crisis Plan Activation
E-Redes proactively activated its Crisis Action Plan in anticipation of worsening weather forecasts. This activation allowed for the reinforcement of technical and operational resources to ensure an adequate response capacity.
Weather vs. Climate in Portugal
Its critically important to distinguish between weather and climate. The current weather situation represents the instantaneous state of the atmosphere in Portugal,characterized by variables like temperature,precipitation,humidity,and wind speed. Climate, though, refers to long-term patterns observed over many years. Publico.pt explains the relationship between daily weather events and long-term climate change, noting that climate change can intensify extreme weather phenomena.
Current Situation (as of January 23, 2026, 19:24:55)
As of this update, no newer information regarding the extent of the power outages or restoration efforts has been confirmed by E-redes or other authoritative Portuguese news sources. The situation remains dynamic and dependent on the progression of the adverse weather conditions. Further updates will be provided as they become available.
Note: This report is based on the provided source and verified with available information as of the specified date and time. The source is considered untrusted, and all claims have been independently checked.