The European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) was created after the severe floods in Central Europe in the summer of 2002. Since then, it has been used for 76disasters covering a range of different catastrophic events including floods, forest fires, earthquakes, storms and drought. 24 different European countrieshave been supported so far with an amount of over €5 billion.
The Commission proposes to give Portugal €50.6 million following the severe forest fires that hit the Central and Northern regions between June and October 2017, claiming many lives. The Commission had helped mobilise firefighting aircraft, firefighters and vehicles through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism throughout 2017. The EU's emergency Copernicus satellite service also helped provide damage assessment maps and sent experts. Now, the EU Solidarity Fund can help cover the costs of emergency measures and help restore damaged infrastructure.