Portugal: River of red wine flows through streets of small town, triggers environmental concerns

Locals of a small town in coastal Portugal were left stunned when a river of red wine flowed through their streets on Sunday, after two tanks owned by Levira Distillery – which were carrying a whopping 600,000 gallons of the booze – suddenly gave way, reports New York Post.

A video posted online showed the red liquid flowing and rushing down a steep hill in the small town of Sao Lorenco de Bairro, home to some 2,000 residents, the newspaper reported.

No injury was reported due to the incident.

Several videos of the unusual incident have now flooded the social media.

According to reports, an environmental alert was raised as the massive spill  could have filled an Olympic-size swimming pool.

Officials then sprang into action trying to stop the wine in its path, before it could literally turn the Certima River into wine, reports New York Post.

Taking immediate action, the Anadia Fire Department blocked off the flood and diverted the stream of wine away from the river.

Firefighters said a basement in a home near the distillery was flooded in the wine, New York Post reported.

Levira Distillery has apologised for the incident.

“We assume full responsibility for the costs associated with cleaning and repairing the damage, having teams do so immediately,” it said in a statement as quoted by media.