The head of state made the comments during a visit to areas affected by the fires in the municipality of Gouveia, in the Serra de Estrela region, in northern Portugal.

De Sousa said it was necessary to think "what will be done so that it is not possible in the future for no one to really know to whom certain land belongs, who takes care of it", so as to make it possible to manage it better.

"Now the great urgency is to support those who are in mourning, in combat, or at least must be on alert in these days, and give them a word of gratitude," the president continued, adding that the authorities pondering how to deal with the issue should not "let [it] cool".

De Sousa had earlier said that he would be flying to Madeira within hours to visit affected areas there, and that the prime minister, António Costa, is to travel there on Thursday.

Costa is to hold meetings with Madeira's regional government and the mayors of the municipalities worst affected by the fires of the past three days.

Three people died on Tuesday in Funchal as a result of fires that had flared up in the municipality on Monday. The regional government has said that one other person is missing.

The fires on the island have also left two people seriously injured, and prompted the evacuation of about a thousand people, including tourists. Many houses and one hotel - the Choupana Hills - were destroyed by the flames.

Portugal's government has sent 115 extra fire fighters to Madeira from Lisbon while the Azores region sent a further 30 to bolster the local effort.

Some 1,700 fire fighters were on Wednesday afternoon battling blazes around the country.