Portugal is not considered to be at great risk of calamities, but when they do occur they can reach great proportions, such as the forest fires in Pedrógão Grande. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study with phenomenological attributes. A semi-structured interview was used with ten nurses selected by the snowball technique. From the analysis nine thematic areas emerged: significance of the experience; feelings experienced by nurses; strategies for managing the situation; facilitators and difficulties that influenced the intervention; needs felt; implications in the lives of nurses after the disaster; suggestions for improvement. The results suggest the need to implement regular disaster training programs for emergency medical and primary health care professionals. Also the lack of post-disaster psychological support points to the need for national and regional plans appropriate to the new realities in order to improve the organization/coordination of means and intervention.