SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 17th June (EUROPA PRESS) –
Tenerife’s Cabildo is enlisting approximately 600 professionals to supervise and manage forest fires during the ongoing season, in addition to various equipment, including two helicopters, one of which will be operational all year round.
The president of Tenerife’s Cabildo, Rosa Dávila, and the Minister of Natural Environment, Sustainability, and Security and Emergencies, Blanca Pérez, unveiled the Brifor Operation for the Prevention and Extinguishing of Forest Fires in the El Gaitero area today, Monday. The event was attended by the insular director of the Natural Environment, Pedro Millán, and the director of Security and Emergencies, Iván Martín.
The President of the Cabildo highlighted the expansion of Operation Brifor with a five-month campaign that will run until 3rd November and the inclusion of two helicopters, one of which will be available all year round and the other during the peak danger months, along with nine new forestry pumpers to enhance emergency response. “Past experience informs us that the interface zone demands more versatile vehicles where the streets are very narrow. Moreover, we have bolstered personnel,” she highlighted.
Rosa Dávila expressed that everything indicates that “we are anticipating a challenging summer due to an incredibly dry winter” and emphasised that 90% of incidents are controlled even before escalating, underscoring “the significance of the prevention work undertaken by the Cabildo staff in conjunction with our awareness campaigns. In this regard, she mentioned that “we are actively implementing the Medianías Plan to raise awareness and collaborate with residents to maintain cleanliness around their residences.”
On her part, Blanca Pérez urged the public to exercise extreme caution when engaging in activities in the mountains and emphasised the necessity to enhance “prevention and awareness efforts, as we are currently coordinating with local councils because many incidents start in the interface zone.” “Coming from a prolonged drought and since March we have had to beef up staff for potential incidents,” she explained, pointing out that “fires can now occur in any month of the year, hence preparedness is crucial.”.
Blanca Pérez praised the work of the Civil Protection section of the Cabildo, which oversees all emergencies, and highlighted that the Island Operational Coordination Center (Cecopin), situated in the blue tower of the Santiago Martín Pavilion, has introduced enhancements in terms of management teams and equipment. Hence, a duplicate of the Highway Information Center, the Tenerife Fire Consortium, and Cecoes-112 has been set up to facilitate their operations in case of a major emergency.
The head of the Cabildo’s Forest Management technical service, Pedro Martínez, cautioned that the lack of rain “dries out the fuel, making it more susceptible to burning” and pointed out that “seamless coordination during emergencies is imperative, which is something we have been diligently working on.” He stressed that prevention is key to forestall fires and echoed that the most alarming issue “is the interface zone due to numerous neglected lands near residences” and advocated for unified efforts to reclaim cultivation areas, consequently reducing fire risks.
SOME 600 PROFESSIONALS.
The Cabildo will deploy approximately 600 professionals to handle any potential emergencies during the season. Hence, the Brifor Operation comprises 286 personnel, with 160 from the Tenerife Cabildo involved in management, coordination, prevention, and firefighting tasks throughout the year, while the remaining 126 reinforce the forest fire operation of the public company Gesplan. Additionally, the team includes 47 members from Teide National Park and 240 professional firefighters. Furthermore, in the event of a major fire, the Cabildo could mobilise the rest of the Natural Environment personnel for support and logistical duties.
Among the novelties for this year, the addition of nine new forestry pumpers stands out, alongside the two helicopters – both stationed at the South Airport -, with one being in operation throughout the year and the other for seven months in alignment with the forest fire campaign.
The Cabildo has two agreements with the Official College of Psychology of Santa Cruz de Tenerife related to significant emergencies. The first one focuses on training professionals from the Fire Consortium and the command staff of Operation Brifor regarding basic first aid knowledge in providing psychological assistance to individuals affected by an emergency situation. The course entails theoretical sessions with audiovisual, bibliographical, and written support, as well as discussions and resolutions of specific scenarios or typical cases to aid comprehension of each topic taught.
The second deal is aimed at aiding victims by providing psychological assistance to those directly affected by exceptional emergency situations within the civilian populace or secondary victims, referring to individuals close to the primary victims. Furthermore, this assistance service involves Security and Emergency professionals from the Cabildo de Tenerife who can intervene in a crisis scenario, both from the Fire Consortium and Brifor Operation personnel.
Additionally, to enhance safety in forested areas, both to avert risk situations and ensure user safety, during periods of intense southern weather – conducive to significant fire conditions -, exceptional measures will be implemented. These could include the prohibition of fireworks, agricultural burns, and forestry activities, and advisories or restrictions on mountain access. Such measures will be extraordinary and only during high fire risk conditions.
AERIAL AND GROUND EQUIPMENT.
The 286 members of Operation Brifor will be furnished with 2 Brifor helicopters (light bombers with a 1,000-litre capacity) stationed at Tenerife South airport. Notably, this year one helicopter will be available all year round. Consequently, the first helicopter will operate from 1st January to 31st December, while the second one will be on duty from 23rd April to 18th November. Thus, both helicopters will be available for firefighting during the peak fire risk period.
In terms of terrestrial resources, the Brifor Operation possesses 2 main pumpers with a 7,000-litre capacity; 19 forestry pumpers with capacities ranging from 3,500 to 5,000 litres (including 9 newly procured ones); 5 medium pumpers with a 1,800-litre capacity; and 30 light pick-up pumpers with a 500-litre capacity. Additionally, there is an Advanced Command Post (PMA) vehicle and 29 off-road transport vehicles. Long-term retardants are available for ground application.
The Brifor Operation includes 13.5 Brivam consisting of specialists who can be airlifted via the two Brifor helicopters, able to function in various setups depending on hazardous conditions and the most probable fire type.
