The subdelegate of the Government in Ourense, Eladio Santos, participated this Wednesday in a simulation of forest fire, with activation of situation 2, in the city of Ourense, which was carried out to test the response to an emergency situation of this nature and reinforce the coordination of the different autonomous, local and State media. In the exercise, the subdelegate recalled that the Government makes available to the Xunta “all the necessary resources” to combat forest fires.
Eladio Santos followed the simulation from the Operational Coordination Center (CECOP) set up by the Xunta in the ISSGA building of Ourense, where there were also the general director of Emerxencias and Interior, Santiago Villanueva; the territorial delegate of the Xunta, Manuel Pardo, the head of Civil Protection of the Subdelegation of the Government in Ourense, Mari Carmen Lodos, and personnel of the City of Ourense, as well as members of the Forces and State Security Corps, among others.
The activation 2 that was implemented for the assumption of two simultaneous spotlights in the nuclei of Naves and Canibelos requires the immediate adoption of protection and assistance measures for the affected population. The subdelegate indicated that “in the last decade it was necessary to activate situation 2 in 38 forest fires in the province of Ourense”. The worst years were 2016 and 2017, with ten fires per year, both affecting 10 municipalities.
Eladio Santos explained that “the Government participated in this simulation as it does every year in the campaign to prevent and fight forest fires, which hit Ourense hard and are a huge environmental problem.” In particular, the subdelegate pointed out that in the last decade (2015-2024) the province registered 6,618 forest fires and 102,421 hectares were burned, 55% of the area burned in Galicia.
In this regard, the subdelegate stressed that the State will once again activate all the mechanisms of its ownership, such as the Civil Guard, the National Police, Civil Protection and the Army to complete the means of the Autonomous Community that has competence in this matter.