History of the Volunteer Firefighters of Adeje
Professional firefighters serving in a volunteer fire station.
Covering a necessity since 1984 to the present day
Safety in a touristic area like Playa de Las Americas in the south of Tenerife is fundamental for its development and the appearance of the Adeje Volunteer Fire Brigade was not a whim.
In 1984 the association A.T.P.A. (Agrupación Turística de Playa de Las Américas) was created, bringing together most of the hoteliers of the time, with the clear objective of promoting and improving the image and conditions of this touristic area. At one of their meetings at the end of 1985, they discussed security in this area of the island, an issue that also affected other emerging sectors at that time. Among the security issues, an important aspect was the creation of a fire brigadethat could act promptly and quickly.
The south of Tenerife was already growing rapidly in terms of tourist beds, and the concern of hoteliers, authorities, tour operators and workers was obvious. The possibility of a fire breaking out was growing exponentially and the nearest fire brigade was in Santa Cruz, the capital of the island, which is about 100 kms away, or an hour and a half in a fire engine.
Chronology
1984
In 1984 the association A.T.P.A. (Agrupación Turística de Playa de Las Américas) was created, bringing together most of the hoteliers of the time, with the clear objective of promoting and improving the image and conditions of this touristic area. At one of their meetings at the end of 1985, they discussed security in this area of the island, an issue that also affected other emerging sectors at that time. Among the security issues, an important aspect was the creation of a fire brigade that could act promptly and quickly.
The south of Tenerife was already growing rapidly in terms of tourist beds, and the concern of hoteliers, authorities, tour operators and workers was obvious. The possibility of a fire breaking out was growing exponentially and the nearest fire brigade was in Santa Cruz, the capital of the island, which is about 100 kms away, or an hour and a half in a fire engine.
1985
For this reason and with the help of this group of hoteliers, G.A.P.A. (Grupo de Autoprotección de Playa de las Américas) was created in December 1985, whose first members were the technical service staff that actually belonged to the different hotels. They were equipped with a Jeep, a motor pump and some hoses, worth 350,000 pesetas and began to work in January 1986. As the fire brigade of reference in the south of Tenerife, it became more and more well known among the people of the south.
Miguel Navarrete were in charge of this first group of approximately twelve men, who received instruction from the firefighters of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. An agreement was reached with the Guardia Civil regarding the notification of sinister, initially via the local radio station (40 principales - La Ser) and later by portable radios.
1986
After this first stage, Carlos Paulsen Rivas, under the auspices of the hotelier Kurt Konrad Mayer, joined the project and gave it considerable impetus. Following the example of fire stations in South America and especially in Central Europe, the Volunteer Fire Brigade was finally established on 26 June 1986.
In the search for training firefighters in aspects such as extrication of victims in traffic accidents, action in fires in confined spaces, etc., an exchange was established with firefighters from the town of Unterhaching, a municipality adjacent to Munich in the south of Germany, these firefighters together with those from Santa Cruz de Tenerife, gave the first specialisation courses. During these years, the corps has had two Fire Stations chiefs; Carlos Paulsen Rivas (1986 - 2012) and Carlos Barrera Gómez (2013).
1988
In 1988 the Association of Volunteer Firefighters was created in order to provide legal cover to the firefighters and be able to administrate the assets that the firefighters were acquiring. The Association has a board of directors composed of a Chairman, a Secretary, a Treasurer, 3 members and the Fire Station Chief. The positions are elected at a general assembly for a period of two years, except the Fire Station Chief position, this position belongs to the board as of right.
1990
At first, due to the location of its premises, the corps was called "Bomberos Voluntarios de Playa de las Américas" (Volunteer Fire Brigade of Playa de las Américas). Since 1990 it has been known as "Bomberos Voluntarios de Adeje", the change is due to the recognition of the work of the Adeje Town Hall, which has always been involved in this project. This change of name coincided with the inauguration of the new Fire Station in Fañabe.
CHAIRMANSHIPS
Presidents of the Association since 1988.
José Ramón Rodríguez Sempere
1988 - 1996
Gonzalo Vellojín Barrios
1997 - 2003
Ricardo Mueller Pichaida
2004 - 2005
Antonio Bello Padilla
2005 - 2009
Carlos Barrera Gómez
2010 - 2012
Michael Mendoza Álvarez
2013 - 2016
Cesar Álvarez
2016
The Adeje Volunteer Fire Departmentis part of the Tenerife Island Fire Consortium, which covers the whole island and is made up of nine volunteer fire stations and five professionals, all working under the same central command.
Pioneers in Spain
The model applied by the Adeje Volunteer Firefighters is a pioneer in Spain. It should be noted that the training given to the volunteers does not differ much from that of salaried firefighters, so therefore we can name this model as "Professional firefighters providing their services in a volunteer fire station".
The members of the Adeje Volunteer Fire Brigade do not receive any remuneration. At present time and due to the fact that it is one of the largest fire stations on the island, the Adeje Town Hall, as part of its different subsidies, has contracted two workers who fulfil the functions as technical service at the fire station.
The facilities of the current Fire Station were built by the Town Hall with a subsidy from the Cabildo Insular. The building has a garage floor for vehicles of approx. 500 mts2, three floors for the entrance hall, dormitories for 22 people, an assembly hall and offices with another 580 mts2. Currently the Adeje fire station is one of the largest on the island of Tenerife.
In short, we have a fully equipped station built in 1990 and extended in 1999, with some of the best equipment in the Canary Islands, as we have always tried to have the best and most suitable equipment to be able to act in different risk situations.
The Adeje Volunteer Fire Department is part of the Tenerife Island Fire Consortium, which covers the whole island and is made up of nine volunteer fire stations and five professionals fire stations, all working under the same central command. There is a fire brigade headquarters located in the capital, Santa Cruz, from where all the insular service orders are coordinated by the single emergency telephone number 112.
Los Bomberos Voluntarios de Adeje cuentan en la actualidad con 39 bomberos activos y 4 bomberos veteranos entre hombres y mujeres. Además en algunos periodos se ha contado una sección de bomberos juveniles con chicos y chicas entre 12 y 17 años. Algunos de ellos se incorporaron plenamente como activos al cumplir los 18 años.
Our Hymn
And there arose in the South of Tenerife
some men who wanted to be
guardians of day and night
heart courage of duty.
I fly with the cry of danger
I burn with the flame if I have to burn
I cry with rage and impotence
if the pain I cannot stop.
I have left fear at home
siren noises have already been heard
I'm covering my body with the suit
that they put on me as a volunteer.
I'm your fireman trust me
I give up my life for you
go to your work, sleep in peace
That this fireman is watching over you.
I want to give everything to be you
I want to give everything for my people
I ask that my hand never tremble
when I can give you stillness.
Pilar Prieto
October 1994