Virginia Barcones highlights the work done by the GREIM of Riaza

• The Mountain Rescue and Intervention Group of the town of Segovia carried out 25 interventions during 2022 and accumulates eight so far this year • The group based in the town of Segovia is composed of a sergeant, a corporal and four civil guards

August 25, 2023.- The delegate of the Government in Castilla y León, Virginia Barcones, has visited the Riaza Post, base of the Rescue Group of Intervention in Mountains (GREIM). During that visit she has been interested in the work carried out by the unit, a work of which she is proud since it is a work with which “lives are saved”.

Virginia Barcones has been accompanied by the government’s deputy delegate in Segovia, Marian Rueda, and by the lieutenant colonel head of the Civil Guard Command, Benito Donate. There was also the mayor of Riaza, Benjamín Cerezo.

The GREIM of Riaza was founded through the Official Gazette of the Civil Guard in 1989. At the time of its foundation it was composed of a corporal and three civil guards. Over time, this unit has been increasing its strength. At present it is composed of a sergeant, a corporal and four civil guards. This increase is due to the increase in the practice of mountain-related activities that has taken place in recent decades.

The government delegate thanked the unit for its work, which in 2022 resulted in 25 interventions. Six of these interventions required the use of the helicopter and 19 were on foot. These interventions resulted in 12 people injured and 11 people unharmed. There were four deaths whose bodies were rescued by the GREIM.

So far this year, eight interventions have been carried out from Riaza on foot, being able to pleasantly observe that despite the large influx of people who carry out activities related to the mountain, the number of accidents in this summer period, although it is not yet finished, has been reduced compared to the previous year.

Virginia Barcones recalled in this regard the rescue carried out in April in Valdeprado when team members had to come to the aid of a hiker who had been trapped between two vertical walls in the face of the sudden growth of the River Moros. Four members of the rescue team, already at night, had to use vertical climbing techniques and all the equipment they have at their disposal to be able to carry out the rescue successfully. “I have seen a short video of that rescue and believe me we can be very proud of the Riaza Mountain Rescue and Intervention Group,” he said.

During her visit, the Government Delegate learned about the technical equipment available to the group. These are three vehicles, a training area in the quartering and all the necessary technical material that is provided by the Mountain Service of the Civil Guard.

Virginia Barcones has indicated that “the Civil Guard is a living body, in constant evolution” to adapt to the times. In this regard, he added that the GREIM of Riaza is not left behind. “They are ready because they train hard,” he explained. Mountain rescue requires undergoing rigorous annual training plans both physically and mentally.

The members of the Rescue and Intervention Service in Mountain of the Civil Guard train in summer and winter. These are work sessions in cavities, ravines, large vertical walls, reconnaissance marches or mountainous slopes.