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Eladio Santos thanks in A Rúa "the intense work" of the UME to protect the province of Ourense from forest fires

28/05/2025
Eladio Santos thanks in A Rúa "the intense work" of the UME to protect the province of Ourense from forest fires

The subdelegate of the Government indicates that the province registered 6,618 forest fires in the last decade, in which 102,421 hectares were burned, more than half of the area burned in Galicia Santos underlines the importance of coordination and recalls that "the troops and means of the State are the disposition of the citizens to give an adequate response to the so complex threat"

The subdelegate of the Government in Ourense, Eladio Santos, thanked this Wednesday "the intense work" that the Military Emergency Unit (UME) does in the fight against forest fires. He did so during a visit to A Rúa, where the Fifth Emergency Intervention Battalion (BIEM V) implemented a coordination exercise with the autonomous troops in the simulation of a forest fire.

Accompanied by the deputy delegate of Defense in Ourense, Jesús Antonio Peñas, Eladio Santos stressed that the presence of the UME in the province, where it will be until May 30, "is a reason for tranquility". "Behind each training there is a constant effort of preparation, coordination and commitment with the ourensanos and ourensanas," he stressed.

With respect, the subdelegate of the Government regretted that the province of Ourense is one of the most punished by forest fires. "In the last decade (2015-2024) the province registered 6,618 forest fires and 102,421.16 hectares were burned, 55% of the area burned in Galicia," he said.

For this reason, Santos stressed that the prevention, training and rapid response work done by the UME is "essential" and defended that "in this type of operations it is clear that investment in defense is a priority." "This exercise we are witnessing today is a simulation, but also a clear sample of how a unit is prepared that acts effectively, disciplinarily and courageously when the emergency is real," he said.

The deputy said that "the commitment of the Government of Spain in this fight is total". "The tireless prevention work done by the Executive led the Ministry of the Interior to advance the summer fire campaign to June 1, when it was being done on June 15, due to the weather forecast," he explained.

In this regard, he stressed the importance of collaboration between Administrations, as evidenced by the coordination manoeuvre between the troops of the Xunta and the UME. The subdelegate said that the State once again activates all the mechanisms of its ownership, such as the Army, the Civil Guard, the National Police and Civil Protection to complete the means of the Autonomous Community that has the competence in this matter. "The means and effectiveness of the State are always the willingness of the citizens of Ourense to give an adequate response to a threat as complex as the forest fires," he stressed.