In the municipality of Valencia, the Elite Unit of the Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team was formed, with the purpose of providing timely responses to cases of natural disasters.
General (B) Iván Campos, first commander of the Valencia Fire Department, reported that the team is made up of Civil Protection personnel, engineers, firefighters and doctors trained in search and rescue operations in collapsed structures.
He explained that the group has thermal cameras, power plants and heavy tools such as rotary hammers for the effective development of its operations during its deployment in the event of any contingency.
He noted that, in addition, a fire suppression unit equipped with a high-capacity pump of 1.200 gallons per minute was incorporated to attend to emergencies in buildings of more than 16 floors.
"It will be stationed at the Branger Avenue Barracks and will have the support of an auxiliary tank for continuous supply," he explained.
Constant monitoring for rainfall
Yenny Mosquera, president of the Municipal Institute of Firefighters of Valencia, stated that officials are constantly monitoring the passage of tropical waves through the region.
He detailed that 61 electrical breakdowns were recently resolved, as well as 20 preventive and emergency prunings; 25 fallen trees were processed, 180 tons of plant and solid waste were collected and nine homes were attended to for minor damage to roofs and infrastructure.
"We recorded 11 road clearings and six fallen trees; fortunately, there were no human losses and the incidents were dealt with that same night," he noted.
He noted that in the face of weather situations such as those recorded last weekend, the supervision of the municipality is channeled from the Situation Room of the Fire Department and through real-time connection with the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (Inameh).
