The President of the Region Renato Schifani was in Pioppo this afternoon to attend the joint civil protection exercise dedicated to forest and interface firefighting, which took place in the Casaboli forest. It is the third training activity in Sicily, after those of recent days in the provinces of Catania and Messina, to test in the field the level of training and operation achieved by specialized volunteers. The objective is also to encourage a common line of conduct among all the operational bodies involved in the various activities of prevention, combating and management of emergencies related to fire risk: Regional Forestry Corps, firefighters, regional department of Civil Protection.
There are around 200 volunteers, coming from the provinces of Palermo, Agrigento and Trapani, who under the guidance of firefighters and operators from the regional Forestry Corps carried out training activities throughout the day on techniques for fighting forest fires, but also for interface fires, given the presence of buildings, near which it is possible to simulate these scenarios.
“Prevention – said Schifani – is strategic to deal with the fires which, often also at the hands of criminals, attack our forests. And the training of staff, including volunteers who support firefighters and foresters, is essential to strengthen the their skills and increase the levels of preparation and their own safety. With my presence I wanted to personally verify the level of operation, but also to thank and make felt the closeness of the institutions, starting from the Government of the Region, to those who have committed themselves. in this exercise: Civil Protection, foresters, firefighters and volunteers to be ready for any emergency”.
At the end of the exercise, Schifani, together with the general manager of the regional civil protection department, Salvo Cocina, took stock of the situation with some local mayors to discuss the coordination of activities, in view of the start of the fire prevention campaign that the Region is undertaking. The year has been brought forward to May 15th.
Source: Adnkronos
