Portugal's Leiria region pushes back June 30 deadline for storm‑damage housing assessments

The Portuguese government, represented by Minister of Cohesion Territorial Manuel Castro Almeida, set a June 30 target to finish evaluating damage to homes destroyed by the severe storms that hit Portugal in January–February, which caused at least 19 deaths and more than €5 billion in losses. Roughly 35 900 households filed applications for reconstruction aid; about 40 % of those cases have been processed, including 9 237 payments and 4 700 rejections.

The Intermunicipal Community of Leiria – responsible for about half of the national applications and with the municipality of Leiria alone submitting around 10 000 claims – announced it will not guarantee the June 30 deadline. Officials cited staffing shortages, competing urban‑planning responsibilities and summer holidays as reasons for the delay. The minister acknowledged the difficulty, especially in the Centre region, but said most processes are nearing completion.