A fire with seven distinct outbreaks in the midlands of Telde, Gran Canaria, was stabilized in under three hours by a team of 50 operators. The blaze, which affected between eight and ten hectares, also caused a power outage for 72 Endesa customers and damaged two transformer stations.
The initial alert came from the Pico de la Gorra surveillance post at 5:12 PM, preceding other cameras and a resident who alerted Cecoes 112 minutes later. The rapid detection enabled the mobilization of a large contingent with air and ground resources.
Federico Grillo, Director of Emergencies for Gran Canaria, is promoting the progressive replacement of surveillance towers with a system of cameras, citizen alerts, and enhanced forest brigades. According to Grillo, statistics since 2015 show that only eight out of approximately 360 fires were reported from the towers, while the majority are reported by the public, especially in urban-forest interface areas.
Personnel from the surveillance posts are being reassigned to brigades, optimizing resources without reducing the overall staff. Currently, three physical posts remain operational: Pico de la Gorra, Alsándara, and Montaña El Pleito. The rest have been replaced by about 40 cameras integrated into the Integral Forest Surveillance System (SIVF).
Grillo explains that posts in isolated areas with lower population density and coverage, such as Alsándara and El Pleito, are being maintained. The Pico de la Gorra post, which monitors a populated area, will remain until personnel movements are complete, as citizen detection is almost immediate.
Retired posts are kept for secondary or monitoring missions. Grillo highlights the operational advantages of new technologies, such as thermal cameras, which complement human surveillance, although both have blind spots.
The Cabildo has around 40 cameras, several thermal, capable of detecting heat sources from several kilometers away. Prevention also focuses on defending homes and fostering citizen and municipal collaboration, as detection is only one element of a device comprising over a thousand personnel.
