The Community of Madrid carried out several forest fire simulations this week with the objective of enhancing the coordination of emergency services as summer approaches and the high-risk period begins. The exercises, organized by the regional Fire Department, concluded on Saturday in a mountainous area of San Martín de Valdeiglesias.

Nearly 400 personnel participated in these drills, which have been conducted for three years and aim to strengthen the operational readiness for the high-risk forest fire season, spanning from June 15 to September 30. The simulations allow for the rehearsal of all phases of an intervention in a natural environment, from resource activation and arrival on site to zoning, extinguishment, and final control and mop-up tasks.

Regional firefighters with ground and air resources, forest brigades, forest rangers, and personnel from SUMMA 112 participated in the exercises. Coordination with resources from other administrations was also practiced, including the seaplanes from the 43 Air Force Group, under the MITECO. Notably, this year saw the first-time inclusion of units from the Madrid City Council firefighters in these joint training sessions.

The simulations begin with a fictional alert from a citizen reporting a smoke column in a forest area. To create realistic scenarios, firefighters prepare difficult-to-access and ecologically valuable zones, generating small controlled fires on platforms to prevent any risk of spread, and using artificial smoke devices to simulate real emergency conditions.

At the end of each exercise, participants hold a technical evaluation meeting to analyze the intervention, identify potential improvements, and reinforce coordination among the involved services.