SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Oct. 24 (EUROPA PRESS) –
King Felipe VI has recognized the work of the people and entities that have intervened in the fire that started on August 15 on the island of Tenerife: “All of you are an example of the best of our society. You are testimony to the strength and the unity of this island of Tenerife, the Canary Islands and Spain, and reminds us again that united we are always stronger”.
This was stated in an event held at the Tenerife Auditorium, in which the staff, personnel, groups, official schools and corporations that intervened in the forest fire that originated in the municipality of Arafo last summer were honored. . During it, a small work by the blacksmith Moisés Afonso was given to those honored, which symbolizes the relationship that the Canary Islands have with nature and with the wood of their pine trees, tea wood.
In his speech, Felipe VI wanted to convey all his love and support, also that of Queen Letizia, to those who have received this “so well-deserved” recognition that they receive from the authorities, those affected, the neighbors and all the Tenerife and Canary Islanders; also remembering that throughout Spain “great concern was felt about the effects of the great forest fire that you suffered, as others were also suffered – with different intensities – in many places in the country.”
The King stressed that this is “an act of tribute but also a show of gratitude” to all those who have been involved and continue to be involved in the coordination, support, protection and extinction of that “very voracious” fire that started in mid August, which has affected some 14,000 hectares in a perimeter of 90 kilometers throughout twelve municipalities, highlighting that the most important thing is that “life was preserved.”
The monarch said he had followed the evolution of the fire with attention and concern and was happy to see today, on the ground, the favorable progress in recent days, with fewer reactivations, of lower intensity, a fact that is added to the change in meteorology, which “gives rise to hope.” He also stressed that the more than two months that have passed since the fire started have been “a very long period of time that has tested the capabilities of the island and all of our emergency systems.”
Despite the difficulty in extinguishing the fire due to the high temperatures, the orography and the weather conditions generated by the fire itself, the King valued the work of the forestry brigades, the UME, the firefighters, the pilots and crews (both of the seaplanes of the 43rd group of the Air and Space Army, as well as of the helicopters deployed from different organizations) “has been a clear example of coordination, dedication and exemplarity, which joins that of all the volunteers who, with their vocation of solidarity – of serving with a shoulder to shoulder – alleviated the moments of anguish of so many people who, with almost no ability to react, had to leave their homes.
He also had words of recognition for “so many anonymous people who offered what they had, demonstrating great generosity to help their neighbors but also to the operational teams of firefighters, soldiers and forestry brigades, to the logistical and police deployment, to the Red Cross… For example, opening their businesses, their bars and hotels so that there was always a hot drink or something to eat, somewhere to stay, and thus cope with the endless hours of work under a threatening fire and suffering infernal temperatures. Tenerife has been, since then, an example. As it has been so many other times; as each and every one of the Canary Islands have been.”
Finally, Felipe VI stated that the example of all those who have been recognized at today’s event “must inspire the youngest and the following generations, both in commitment and respect for the common heritage and our natural environment – which also sustains our lives – as well as being willing to step forward when necessary and trusting the institutions and authorities, the experts and those responsible for emergencies. “And in that task you will always find us at your side, because it is also our task,” concluded the monarch, trusting that “we will soon see Tenerife recovered again.”
AN EXAMPLE OF VALUE, STRENGTH AND FORTUNE.
For his part, the president of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, wanted to thank the Kings for their sensitivity “not only for being here today, for sharing with those affected and with those who have fought – and continue to do so – to extinguish this fire, but because they have been aware of its evolution at all times.
When 71 days have passed since one of the worst fires to have affected the island of Tenerife, Fernando Clavijo wanted to recognize, first of all, those affected, the thousands of evacuees who “gave an example of courage, strength, of fortitude; also to those who fought on the front lines against the flames, to those who worked on the different fronts, to the volunteers, to the institutions of Tenerife and to the resources that moved from other islands.
The Canary Islands president highlighted that we are facing “one of the examples of coordination that we never want to put into practice but that shows that when we work together, putting the problem at the center, we are capable of responding,” and added that this same coordination is the that “we also have to put into practice to recover the affected area, since our responsibility goes beyond the management of the fire and the Government of the Canary Islands, the Cabildo of Tenerife and the Government of Spain have not wasted a minute.”
Along these lines, Clavijo stressed that, when the fire has not yet been extinguished, there is coordination between administrations to be able to start working on the recovery of the areas devastated by the fire: “We will put all our commitment and effort into this to return to those affected what they lost, so that the farmers who saw their way of life devastated can recover from this hard blow, so that the primary sector can recover, so that the residents of the affected municipalities can recover their environment; but also to recover the essence of our mountain, its environmental richness, the landscape, the essence of an entire island, our hallmark.”
The president admitted that it has not been easy for those affected or for the technicians and all the troops deployed by land and air to manage a fire that has had all the elements against it: extreme temperatures, heat waves, reactivations, In short, “with the effects of climate change against which we also have to redouble our efforts.”
Finally, he took advantage of today’s event to express his gratitude to the Government of Spain, which “from minute one made itself available by deploying more air resources than have ever been seen on this earth”, and also to send a message of hope: “These twelve municipalities are going to overcome this hard blow and will sprout again. Our sons and daughters will once again enjoy an area of incalculable value. We owe it to them and we are going to work together to make it so.”
