The Government Delegate in Extremadura, Francisco Alejandro Mendoza Sánchez, chaired this morning, together with the Councilor for Agriculture, Rural Development, Population and Territory of the Junta de Extremadura in office, Begoña García Bernal, the meeting between administrations and agencies to coordinate actions against forest fires. Representatives of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, the General Directorate of Civil Protection and Emergencies of the Ministry of the Interior and the Junta de Extremadura, as well as of the Civil Guard, National Police, Military Emergency Unit, Air Base of Talavera la Real, Deputations of Badajoz and of Cáceres, Hydrographic Confederations of Guadiana and of the Tagus, EXTREADIF, Demarcation of Roads of the State, Portuguese Civil Government have also participated in this meeting.
This meeting, which takes place every year, establishes the coordination protocols between all the administrations and agencies involved in the fight against fire in Extremadura, analyzes the means available for this work and the forecasts for the campaign that is now beginning.
Campaign 2022
During the year 2022, 454 conatos of fires were registered in Extremadura, which are those less than one hectare, while those over one hectare were 315, in total, 769 sinister, which represents an increase of 3.9% and 2 fires with more than 500 hectares burned, in the month of July, the fires of Ladrillar(Cáceres)-Monsagro(Salamanca), where a Unified Command Post was constituted for the first time nationwide, affecting the same fire to two Autonomous Communities; and that of Casas de Miravete (Cáceres). The forest area burnt was 11,039 hectares, compared to 5,931 hectares in the previous year (46.3% more); twenty-three percent of the area burnt was of herbaceous vegetation (pastures and pasture); and the other 77% of woody vegetation (wooded and scrubland area and low mountain). Despite the efforts made and means employed by both the Government of Spain and the Junta de Extremadura in order to improve the coordination policy and the adequacy of available resources, there has been a 46% increase in the area burned by forest fires.
The Government Delegate has indicated that “Extremadura has a state-of-the-art system for preventing and extinguishing forest fires; to which we must add the effort made by the Junta de Extremadura throughout the year in terms of prevention and the collaboration of the BRIF of Pinofranqueado of the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge”. Likewise, Francisco Mendoza has highlighted the consolidation of the fire risk prediction system by municipalities; “a unique model in Spain that has been designed by the territorial delegation of the AEMET in Extremadura and that has functioned fully to performance in the four previous years, in our region and the country as a whole”.
Media
The Ministry of Ecological Transition, represented at the meeting, reported on the means that will operate like other years in Extremadura, whose relationship is detailed below:
● Two Reinforcement Brigades in Forest Fires (BRIF) based in Pinofranqueado.
● A Kamov Ka-32 Extinguishing “Bomber” Helicopter, with 4,500-litre capacity helibalde operating from the base of Plasencia.
● A Canadair type hydroplane, model Cl-415 T, with a tank of 5,500 liters of water and base in Talavera la Real.
● A Mobile Analysis and Planning Unit (UMAP) based in Cáceres (formerly UMMT Mobile Units of Meteorology and Transmissions).
● A coordination and observation aircraft (ACO) based in Talavera la Real. In addition, there is support from the Ministry of Defense through the UME (Military Emergency Unit), which will be incorporated into the work of extinguishing fires in cases in which the Junta de Extremadura, in application of the existing protocols, requests their collaboration.
Year 2023
On the day held this morning, the data relating to the current year were also provided. From January 1 to May 31, 2023, 159 fires of lower fires and 49 fires of more than one hectare have occurred in Extremadura. The Pinofranqueado Forest Fire is not included because it was not considered extinguished on that date and is estimated to have affected an area greater than 11,000 hectares. To face the emergency generated by this great fire, the Junta de Extremadura activated Operational Situation 2 of the Special Plan for Civil Protection against Forest Fires of the Autonomous Community of Extremadura (INFOCAEX) and Level 2 of the INFOEX Plan. Despite the very unfavorable weather, orographic and time factors, the adequate coordination of the intervening media, with more than 600 personnel, belonging to the Junta de Extremadura, the Deputations of Badajoz and Cáceres, municipalities in the area, the Government of Spain, and other Autonomous Communities, such as Andalusia, Castilla La Mancha and Castilla-León, and our neighboring country, Portugal, led to minimize, as far as possible, the devastating effects of the fire.
The Government Delegate recalled that, during the year 2022, the area affected by forest fires increased by 42% compared to the previous year, and that the hectares burned in the fire of this month of May of Pinofranqueado equal those burned during the past year, therefore, we must continue to work in a coordinated manner between the different administrations in the prevention and extinguishment of fires, and warns that it is necessary to sensitize the citizens to take precautionary measures to avoid fires, to inform, as soon as possible, before the detection of a fire and to lend their collaboration to the State Security forces in the investigation of the fires that have been intentional.
Therefore, in view of the period of maximum risk close to beginning, it is especially important to maintain adequate measures of prevention and preparation of extinguishing devices, especially in the event that the fires affected the population and non-forest goods. In this sense, meetings such as today’s serve to fine-tune the organizational measures that guarantee the coordination of the actions foreseen in the State Emergency Plan for Forest Fires and its coordination with the INFOCAEX and INFOEX Plans of the Autonomous Community of Extremadura.
Precautions and investigations
Finally, the Government Delegate has asked all the people of Extremadura to be aware of the absolute need to take precautions and avoid recklessness since “most of the fires have their origin in human negligence, and that is something we must remedy as soon as possible for the good of all”. He also appealed to the importance of citizen involvement in this work: “It is essential,” he said, “to collaborate with citizens during the investigation of the fires that have been intentionally provoked. Therefore, any data or any possible clue can be more than essential to solve an investigation of this type.” During 2022, the Civil Guard detained or investigated 33 people for causing fires or for carrying out reckless actions. In the months leading up to 2023, one person has already been arrested and two others accused of causing fires.