Aragonese troops participate in a mission in Bolivia in response to the forest fire emergency

The international mission is made up of eight experts and 41 forest firefighters, who have been sent to fight the fires, after the country was declared a national disaster, with 3,000 fires recorded, more than four million hectares and more than 1,000 families affected.

Redacción Tuesday, October 15, 2024 / 08:53

The Infoar operation is participating in an international mission to support Bolivia in the face of the forest fire emergency, with a specialized forest fire technician , who has moved to the Andean country. The international mission is made up of eight experts and 41 forest firefighters, who have been sent to fight the fires after the country was declared a national disaster, with 3,000 fires recorded, more than four million hectares and more than 1,000 families affected.

The head of the forest fire section of the province of Huesca, Francho Aso, has joined the mission from Aragon, given his experience in forest fire management, and he shares his knowledge with other representatives from other autonomous communities. The technical forestry engineer is attending as part of a Spanish delegation of 49 people.

FOREST FIRE EVALUATION AND ADVISORY TEAM

Within the framework of this need for assistance to international countries, the Forest Fire Assessment and Advisory Team (FAST) was created within the European Civil Protection Mechanism, but it is not limited to that area.

This is a team of experts that is born from the experience and knowledge in the management of forest fires accumulated in Spain over the years, available to support other countries that face forest fires on a more or less regular basis.

Specifically, the assistance is limited to specific advice on emergencies due to ongoing forest fires and to general evaluation and advice on extinguishing fires, risk awareness, prevention policies and training or research, among other areas.

The main areas of expertise provided by the experts include: planning, operations, logistics, prevention and preparation or information systems in forest fires.

Experts from Aragon and other Spanish regions, who are members of FAST, have participated in other international missions coordinated by the European Commission, such as those in Guatemala, Portugal and Bolivia. This highly relevant collaboration reinforces the importance of cooperation between countries to deal with large-scale environmental emergencies such as forest fires.