An appeal is underway to mobilise entrepreneurs in the construction sector in Luxembourg, both Portuguese and others, to show solidarity with the people in the regions most affected by the recent storms in Portugal.
It is coordinated by Orlando Pinto, owner of Sopinor, and the Portugal-Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce and Industry, who aim to gather as much support as possible in the Grand Duchy.
The Portuguese businessman has transformed a warehouse at his company’s headquarters in Schifflange into a large collection centre for donations of building materials to be sent to Portugal.
Roof tiles, tarpaulins, bricks, scaffolding, lifts, insulated panels, paint, and more, are needed. The list of building materials currently in short supply in Portugal’s most devastated regions is enormous. And work has barely begun to rebuild family homes, as well as schools, roads, and other public infrastructure that was washed away by the weather.
“All help with building materials is welcome and urgently needed to send to the destroyed areas in Portugal,” Pinto said.
“This is the biggest disaster to hit our home country and entrepreneurs and private individuals in the sector in Luxembourg can contribute to reconstruction,” he added.
Pinto is currently in the Algarve, where he also has works and workers, and is organising the solidarity campaign in the Grand Duchy from there.
Everything is in place at the donation centre in Schifflange. “From this Tuesday, anyone who wants to can go there and hand in their building materials to donate to Portugal. We have a team ready to receive, unload and store everything. The materials will then be transported by truck to the places of greatest need in Portugal,” Pinto said. “There are many homeless families, with destroyed homes that urgently need to be repaired.”
‘Help must reach those who need it most’
At the same time as launching the campaign in Luxembourg, the Portuguese man is also multiplying his contacts with town halls and official bodies in Leiria, Coimbra and Marinha Grande, the regions worst hit by the storm.
“Help has to reach those who need it most and that’s what I’m working on now too. The material collected in Luxembourg will go directly to specific locations and the donors will be informed where their support has gone,” said Pinto.
Pinto also has a foreman and a team of builders on the ground in Portugal to help where needed. His campaign in Luxembourg is centred on building materials. “There’s a shortage of labour in Luxembourg for the work, so I think it will be difficult to [send] workers. Materials, yes,” he said.
Late last week, the Portuguese government called on emigrants, construction workers and those with skills in this sector to help out in the areas destroyed by the storms.
Portuguese-Luxembourg Chamber campaign
For its part, the Portugal-Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCILL) is also launching an appeal for solidarity for companies in the Grand Duchy.
“We’re contacting official institutions to support the reconstruction of the most affected Portuguese areas,” Francis da Silva, president of CCILL, told Contacto. “Luxembourg is generous and I believe they will respond to our appeal.” The appeal formally launched on Tuesday.
“Through institutional contacts, we are calling on Luxembourg companies to come forward and contact CCILL if they wish to support the reconstruction operations and help the affected populations,” da Silva said.
CCILL is also advising Portuguese nationals in Luxembourg with affected homes, in collaboration with the Imocomunidades.lu platform, which presents a practical guide with steps to follow in the case of damaged property.
(This article was published by Contacto. Machine translated, with editing and adaptation by Alex Stevensson.)
