Army Collaboration in Forest Fire Prevention in Galicia

Various Airborne Light Brigade units, with headquarters on Base "General Morillo" in Pontevedra, are part of operation "Centinela Gallego 2011", put into action from 15th July until 15th September, within the annual firefighting campaign in which the Army collaborates with civilian authorities.

The military contribution to forest fire prevention, with operational deployment of patrols and air assets in over 30 municipalities and a half dozen forest districts, will include tasks of surveillance and maintenance of deterrent presence that permit facilitating early information to extinction services, as well as notifying Security Forces and Corps of persons suspected of having intentionally started fires.

The operation, in which members of the Navy’s North Brigade also participate, will be under the control of General José Antonio Alonso Miranda, commander of the Airborne Light Brigade, and will be within the scope of the collaboration agreement on 28th June last between the Ministry of defence and the autonomous government of Galicia, which has been renewed annually since 2007.

Initially operation "Centinela Gallego 2011" is being activated at its medium force level, although it is capable of reaching participation of up to 75 patrols and two helicopters at its very high level. 

Collaboration of the Airborne Light Brigade with civilian authorities dates back many years.  Thus, it has collaborated in disaster situations such as the successive floods in the Padrón region, in bridge replacement in Xistral, in 1983, and in Negreira, in 1971; ship rescue operations such as that of the Erkowit, in 1971, the Cason, in 1987; as well as in the more recent Prestige disaster.