Despite the poor weather experienced over the last few weeks, Gibraltar’s emergency services and other responding agencies have already begun to prepare for the warmer months and the start of the high-risk fire season. Earlier in the year, an emergency planning team with a specific focus on fires in the Upper Rock Nature Reserve convened to start preparations for such an eventuality. As part of their ongoing preparatory work, a tabletop exercise (TTX), led by the Office of Civil Contingencies, was conducted yesterday at No 6 Convent Place.

Taking part in the exercise were senior members of Gibraltar Fire and Rescue Service, Airport Fire and Rescue Service, Royal Gibraltar Police, Gibraltar Health Authority, Ambulance Service, Public Health, Elderly Residential Services, AquaGib, and the Department of Environment’s Upper Rock team. The exercise was overseen by the Minister with responsibility for Civil Contingencies and the Fire and Rescue Services, Leslie Bruzon.

Civil Contingencies Coordinator and the Exercise Director for the TTX, Lt Col (Retd) Ivor Lopez, stressed the importance of ensuring that all preparatory work is carried out prior to the start of the high-risk fire season. He added: “The emergency services and responding partners have a duty to remain competent to fulfil their roles in emergency preparedness, response and recovery. It is essential that they continue to regularly work and train together and this is underpinned by a systematic and sequential approach to individual and collective training, validation, learning and improvement. Yesterday’s TTX is a key part of this process and it has provided an opportunity to jointly practise and assess our response strategies to a large fire in the Upper Rock Nature Reserve.”

The Minister with responsibility for Civil Contingencies and the Fire and Rescue Services, the Hon Leslie Bruzon MP, added: “The coming months are likely to see significant vegetation growth in the Upper Rock Nature Reserve. The effects of climate change are something we need to remain alive to and recent weather patterns show that we are likely to experience more hot and dry weather as we approach the summer months. The risk of a fire in our Nature Reserve will therefore be ever-present and we must continue to be fully prepared for this. In the event of a fire, an effective and immediate response from all our emergency services and other agencies will be key to success. Regular training and exercising are essential, as is the need to jointly work together to address every operational challenge that will inevitably come our way. I would like to thank the Civil Contingencies Coordinator and his team for organising this exercise as well as all the organisations and agencies that took part in this most crucial training event.”