BEIJING — Premier Li Keqiang on June 18 sent a message of condolences to his Portuguese counterpart Antonio Costa over the latest severe forest fire in Portugal that has resulted in dozens of deaths besides severe material damage.

Premier Li said in the message that he was shocked to learn that the fire had caused serious losses of lives and property.

“On behalf of the Chinese government and people, and in my own name, I feel deeply grieved over the deaths of the victims and express sincere sympathy to their families. I hope the injured could get well soon,” he said.

The Premier said he believed that under the leadership of Costa, Portugal will definitely be able to overcome the difficulty and do the best to reduce the losses caused by the fire.

The death toll from the forest fires raging in central Portugal rose to 62 on June 18, with 54 others injured, and search for more bodies and investigation into the cause of the disaster were still underway.