The Deputy Minister of Culture, Tourism and Sport, Luis Martín, attended this drill, which began with a call to the 112 emergency number reporting a supposed fire at this 18th-century venue, declared an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC). Regional firefighters responded to the scene to simulate extinction efforts and the rescue of artistic pieces, following a protocol based on the use of safeguard sheets.
These documents contain the necessary information to protect the heritage and artworks housed in the historic buildings of the Community of Madrid in case of an incident. They detail the procedures for removing and handling different objects, as well as access and evacuation routes. They also include the building's structural characteristics, its plans and those of its surroundings, along with available fire detection and extinction systems, such as smoke detectors and fire extinguishers.
During the exercise, professionals moved movable assets to the exterior and protected those that had to remain in place inside, according to the instructions on the sheets. The extracted pieces were deposited in an area for packaging by Culture technicians, with the collaboration of the Civil Protection Volunteers' Immediate Logistics Response Team for Emergencies (ERIVE). Civil Guard officers participated in their custody until the simulated fire was declared extinguished and the items were returned to their original location.
For its part, SUMMA 112 managed the simulated medical attention for the injured, while the Local Police controlled access and traffic in the area.
Currently, 142 buildings in the Community of Madrid have these types of instruments, developed by the General Sub-directorate of Historical Heritage, in collaboration with emergency services and security forces. These documents list the movable assets present in each infrastructure, establishing different priority levels and identifying pieces that can be evacuated off-site and those that must be protected in situ.
This preventive conservation project was launched in late 2019 to address emergency situations and prevent damage similar to that which occurred during the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in April of that year. This is the fifth drill of its kind held in the region, following those conducted at the Cathedral of La Magdalena in Getafe (2022), the Magistral Cathedral of Alcalá de Henares (2023), the church of Santa Catalina in Villamanta (2024), and last year at the old convent of Boadilla del Monte.
