The president of the National Emergency and Civil Authority (ANEPC) said this Sunday that the Portuguese Network Protection Authority (SI) System has no flaws, but punctual use intervals of excess safety of use.

“Occasionally, there may be overuse […], not least because there has to be a great deal of discipline regarding the issue of using SIRESP’s resources. I can say that the system, in itself, has no flaws”, stated Duarte da Costa.

ANEPC spoke to journalists on the sidelines of the solemn session of the Day of the Municipality of Batalha (District of Leiria da Batalha), where he was asked about the occurrence of faults in the SIRESP network in the incident in Serra da Estrela, which broke out on the 6th and was dominated in Friday night.

“We, deep down, what we know is that they use their own means and are the force of orders with guarantees”,

The SIRESP network is an exclusive communications network of the Portuguese State for the command, control and coordination of communications in all emergency and security situations, according to its website.

The president of ANEPC stressed that this “is a complex system, it is a system that is subject to weather conditions, but, due to the greater redundancy of means, greater redundancy of antennas, of mobile antennas, of the satellite redundancy itself”, it is “mounted ” and worked so that there are no failures in the theaters of operations”.

According to Duarte Costa, “what there may be, a usage fee, is certain, in some moments of usage [excessiva] and often by the very discipline” of those who use the system.

“And I don’t withdraw, from all the groups, from all of us who also use SIRESP, and, normally, from disconnecting the initial groups from where we can, to be able to speak in the theater […]. And I’ve been on top of the situation that’s going on in theaters of operations,” he said.

The chairman of the NEPC word assured that “there-the-textiles” ensure the approach that they are to the theater and that can be critical to the system”, [de operações]” and there are all the capabilities for everyone to communicate.

The Minister of Internal Administration, José Luís Carneiro, also said he was not aware of failures in the SIRESP network.

On Saturday, the ministry announced that SIRESP will have a new investment of 4.2 million euros in redundancy equipment to ensure satellite communications in the event of failure of terrestrial circuits.

To the question about whether such investment aims to fill gaps in the SIRESP network detected in the districts of Julho in the district of Leiria futuro, José Luís Carneiro replied, noting that the measure will “prepare the interoperability between the mainland’s communications system with the communications systems of future of the autonomous regions of the Azores and Madeira”.

According to the public tender, “purpose for the acquisition, installation, configuration and placement of 612 ‘router’ aggregation services (RAS) equipment for the SIRESP network”.

The minister’s office adds that the tender provides for a 24-month warranty and technical support service.

“This step in the national network is to reinforce and secure autonomy, as announced on the occasion of the launch of public investment”, reads the note.