Two tourists had to be rescued in the early hours of Wednesday without warm clothing and showing signs of dehydration at the Teide. The operation was made possible because they pressed the emergency button installed months ago at the upper station of the Cable Car. “The assessment is highly positive; we have improved safety for people,” highlights the Security and Emergencies councillor.
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At the end of last year, in December, the building attached to the upper station of the Teide Cable Car became equipped with a new device: a direct connection point to the Coordinating Centre of Emergencies and Safety 112 from where emergency calls could be made. And that service has already been used. Proof of this is what happened in the early hours of last Wednesday, when a middle-aged couple of tourists, without warm clothing and showing signs of dehydration, were forced to press the button.
Once the rescue operation was underway, the Cable Car staff offered their collaboration and made the rescue units located in their facilities available for the emergency. A group of firefighters from La Orotava also arrived at the scene and joined the operation. The work was successfully completed at 2:20 hours.
The island councillor for Natural Environment, Sustainability, Security and Emergencies, Blanca Pérez, explained yesterday that the system has been activated four times in the last month, as well as two or three times in the previous months. “The assessment is highly positive; we have improved safety for people,” celebrated the nationalist politician.
“The Tenerife Island Council has implemented an emergency shelter and alert system at the Teide Cable Car with the aim of enhancing safety in the Teide National Park,” the island institution had explained in December, coinciding with the system coming into operation. “The point allows us to act more quickly because it has a connection to the 112 from the Government of the Canary Islands and resources are activated immediately. We have also provided a logistical point to attend to around 50 people in the event of a major emergency,” stated the President of the Council, Rosa Dávila.
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The island leader pointed out that there are rescue teams, oxygen therapy equipment, and portable stretchers, among other items, available to the Firefighters of Tenerife, the Emergency and Rescue Group (GES) and the Red Cross. Meanwhile, the director of the Teide Cable Car, Ignacio Sabaté, emphasized the importance of continuing to collaborate with the Council and the National Park to enhance safety, while the chief officer of the Tenerife Firefighters Consortium, Florencio López, indicated that “the structure of the Teide Cable Car is a key element for the safety of high mountain activities in Tenerife.” The logistical centre also has the ability to take in people in an emergency situation and, at the same time, has a range of stored materials.
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