Kristin: PS wants explanations about delay in chapel recovery

In a question delivered to the Assembly of the Republic and addressed to the Minister for Culture, Youth and Sport, Margarida Balseiro Lopes, parliamentarians recalled that, in view of the “gravity of the situation”, the public institute Cultural Heritage, in the following month, announced “an urgent intervention to safeguard, amounting to EUR 59,452,18 and with an estimated execution period of 35 working days, to remove and rebuild coverage and prevent the progression of damage”.

Deputies Eurico Brilhante Dias and Catarina Louro pointed out that the minister “publicly acknowledged the urgency of the intervention and stated that she would like to have the recovery completed by August 15, a particularly relevant date for the sanctuary” with the same name, “attending to the holding of the traditional feasts in honor of N. Sr. da Incarnation”.

“ However, after eight months on the storm and more than seven months on the announcement of urgent intervention, the situation remains without a definitive solution”, stressed the Members, who want to know the reasons why there is still no definitive timetable for the temple rehabilitation undertaking, which “work and studies need to be concluded so that the definitive rehabilitation procedure can be launched” and what is the deadline for its completion.

The estimated amount for the full rehabilitation of the church and source of funding to support it were other questions formulated by the socialists, who also want to know what assessment the Government (PSD/CDS) makes of the “risk of degradation of the existing artistic and historical heritage” within it.

The parliamentarians also demanded to know that circumstances prevented the restoration of the temple from being completed on August 15 and that “the government now assumes a new deadline for the completion of rehabilitation”.

On February 5, the Cultural Heritage announced an urgent intervention in the church, classified as a Monument of Public Interest since 1982, a decision made after technical examination that confirmed the “situation of high structural risk of the building”.

“ The most significant damage corresponded to the partial collapse of the church's cover, with elements of the support structure in wood broken or absent, leaving much of the interior directly exposed to the weather ", clarified at the time the Cultural Heritage, recognizing the risk to the heritage of "high historical and artistic value".

Now, the institute has assumed that “there is still no definitive schedule of work, since the process concerning the rehabilitation project is not yet closed”.

In a response sent to Lusa, the Cultural Heritage pointed out that the shrine depends on the Diocese of Leiria-Fatima and that on April 16, it concluded a collaborative protocol, sharing “responsibilities for implementing the action with the brotherhood” of the temple.

“ In this framework, an urgent intervention was carried out to safeguard the chapel, at the expense of the budget of the institute and with the execution of the brotherhood, completed in May, which allowed to perform the work of removing debris and waste caused by the partial collapse of the roof (...), replacement of broken tiles in one of the waters and covering the remaining structure of the secluded waters ", among other works.

After this intervention, the institute, “in collaboration with the brotherhood”, is developing the previous diagnostic work to “prepare the procedure of the final rehabilitation project of the property”.

Declaring “committed to collaborate with the diocese” in solving this “serious problem”, the Cultural Heritage noted that its technical body “has been subjected to enormous pressure due to the commitments made with the Recovery and Resilience Plan”, which “impacted in the treatment of the problem of the Shrine of the Incarnation”.

After the “critical phase”, the institute promises “the necessary diligence” to, “as soon as possible”, give “a definitive impetus to the process”.