The Cabildo de Tenerife has incorporated four heavy forest fire engines to complement the land resources of the Forest Fire Prevention and Extinguishing Operation.
The president of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Rosa Dávila, and the councilor of Natural Environment, Sustainability, Emergencies, and Security, Blanca Pérez, presented on Monday at the Industrial Estate of Valle de Güímar four new heavy forest fire engines that reinforce the mobile park of the operation.
During the event, attended by the insular director of Natural Environment, Pedro Millán; the insular director of Security and Emergencies, Iván Martín; and the technician of the Forest Fire Prevention and Extinguishing Operation, José María Sánchez, the four vehicles were presented, which have a capacity of 3,500 to 5,000 liters of water and have represented an investment of 1.2 million euros.
«These fire engines improve our intervention capacity and make a difference in the way we respond to fires. They are vehicles that reach where they couldn’t before and act with great efficiency, supported by an increasingly autonomous and modern operation,» said Rosa Dávila.
Blanca Pérez recalled that «this operation is the result of a lot of work, planning ahead, and listening to the teams on the ground.»
In her opinion, «what we are presenting today is just a part of everything we have been adding to be more prepared and to act quickly and effectively when necessary.»
Between 2023 and 2025, the Cabildo de Tenerife has incorporated 14 heavy forest fire engines into the operation, 3 medium Unimog fire engines, and 2 tanker trucks with a capacity of 9,000 liters to supply other vehicles, representing an investment of around 6 million euros.
In the aerial field, Tenerife has two operational helicopters throughout the year, based in the south of the island, with a capacity of 1,000 liters and geopositioning technology.
These are joined by BRIF helicopters, multifunctional aircraft from the Government of the Canary Islands, the Air Tractor plane based in La Gomera, and specialized drones. Additionally, this year, there are helicopters from the Army with night vision, reinforcing surveillance during the nights, as reported by the Cabildo.
Also in the unmanned aerial field, the Cabildo de Tenerife has incorporated three drones equipped with thermal and visual cameras that allow precise real-time monitoring, even in low visibility conditions.
Regarding this, Blanca Pérez points out that «these devices have become a key tool to detect fire outbreaks at very early stages, analyze the evolution of active spots, and coordinate the response from the air, thus reinforcing operational capacity in hard-to-reach areas.»
The president also stated that «this set of resources, both new and those that have been added in previous years, allow us to respond quickly and safely to a fire.»
MASSIVE HUMAN DEPLOYMENT
The deployment of the operation extends from July 2 to November 2, the period of maximum risk.
The Cabildo recalls that more than 900 personnel are part of this insular device: the Forest Brigades (Brifor), reinforcements from Gesplan, Civil Guard, Army, Civil Protection, Fire Consortium, Red Cross, UME, and Teide National Park.
One of the key reinforcements this year is the second edition of ‘Operation Prometeo,’ in collaboration with the Army, which foresees the deployment of 920 military patrols for deterrent surveillance.
As a novelty, the operation includes night flights thanks to the helicopters of the VI Manoeuvre Battalion based in Los Rodeos.
The campaign also includes ongoing training in extinction techniques, fire behavior, and action in interface fires.
Additionally, extraordinary measures will be activated in case of extreme risk episodes, such as the prohibition of agricultural burns, fireworks, or the preventive closure of forest tracks.
