<![CDATA[ ANEPC chumba três estações de metro por falta de segurança contra incêndios ]]>

The National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC) rejected the fire safety projects for three metro stations: one in operation in Porto, in Vila Nova de Gaia, the Manuel Leão station; and the Santos and Estrela stations still under construction in Lisbon.

ANEPC rejects three metro stations due to lack of fire safety, one in operation in Porto and two still under construction in Lisbon. Miguel Baltazar

According to information reported by Público newspaper this Wednesday, the first fire safety project at Manuel Leão station was rejected in July 2023, when it was still under construction. Metro do Porto told the newspaper that it submitted a request in December of that year, but before ANEPC made a decision, the station was inaugurated on June 28, 2024. Two months later, the second project was also rejected. Metro do Porto says it is not satisfied with this decision and is still awaiting the outcome of a hierarchical appeal it filed, stating that it has received the green light from an external auditor and the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT).

At Gaia station, the safety measures in question relate to the maximum number of people that can be in the station, an important detail for determining the conditions necessary for a possible evacuation of the site, as well as the number of exits and the width of the stairs, which do not comply with the standards.

Regarding the stations still under construction in Lisbon, Estrela is the one that presents the greatest safety concerns, as it is located 54 meters above the surface and access is only via mechanical means, six elevators and two escalators. There are stair accesses, but they will only be used in case of emergency, and at Santos station, all accesses are via escalators. Furthermore, both stations do not comply with the maximum distance of 15 meters, which must be allowed from the ends of the platform to the first evacuation route that takes people to the exit. Both rejections took place in September 2023.

When asked by Público about the rejections, Metro de Lisboa stated that it had "not yet" submitted new requests to ANEPC, as "adaptations to the respective projects are being prepared, as is normal in these processes".

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