Fábio da Silva

Mr. Fábio Miguel Martins da Silva began firefighting when he was 18 as an urban firefighter.  At age 21, he began working with the Helitransported Brigades and has been part of the Special Force for Civil Protection since 2007.  He now holds the third highest command position in the national structure where he serves as the operational coordinator, as well as the leader of the Fire Analysis and Use Group.  This taskforce, comprising of 28 firefighters and analysts and led by Mr. da Silva, has made a significant contribution to improving Portugal’s capacity to respond to wildland fires.  Mr. da Silva led the development of the FEB Monitoring GIS system currently in use which supports operational decisions.  He is also committed to education and training.  He is a professor at the Nova University Lisbon for postgraduate courses, as well as an instructor at the National School of Fire Fighters of Portugal (Escola Nacional de Bombeiros).  In addition to sharing his experience and work at national and international conferences, Mr. da Silva is also an expert from the Commission’s Civil Protection Mechanism, and serves on the advisory board of the Pau Costa Foundation.