Prevention plan against fires in the area, summit in the prefecture

Frost. This morning, in the Civil Protection Room of the Government Palace, Prefect Chiara Armenia chaired the first meeting for the planning of activities aimed at preventing and combating forest and interface fires due to the approaching summer season. In addition to the Mayors of the Municipalities of the province of Caltanissetta – in remote connection – the works were attended by the Police Commissioner of Caltanissetta, Dr. Pinuccia Albertina Agnello, the Provincial Commander of the Carabinieri, Col. Vincenzo Pascale, the Provincial Commander of the Guardia di Finanza , Col. Stefano Gesuelli, the Provincial Commander of the Fire Brigade, Eng. Michele Burgio, the Director of the Departmental Forestry Inspectorate, Eng. Salvatore Bonsangue, the representative of the Extraordinary Commissioner of the Free Municipal Consortium of Caltanissetta, arch. Giuseppe Lunetta and the representatives of the regional Department of Civil Protection. At the beginning, the Prefect, in thanking those present, underlined the need to plan synergistic action between all interested parties in order to prepare an effective common preventive strategy capable of preventing and combating the triggering and spread of fires. As in previous years, therefore, also in consideration of the characteristics of this territory, characterized by the presence of numerous and large wooded areas which expose it to a high risk of starting and spreading fires, the Prefecture deemed it appropriate to activate the monitoring of the activities carried out and the actions implemented by each Municipality. This is also due to the fact that, as highlighted by the Prefect of Armenia during the meeting, in the current year the already complex orographic scenario risks worsening further not only due to the forecast of very high temperatures but also due to the severe state of water crisis which affects the regional territory and significantly affects the availability of resources for extinguishing fires. Therefore, in consideration of the concomitance of these factors, the Prefect, together with the provincial Commander of the Fire Brigade and the Director of the Forestry Corps, reiterated that the main objective is to start a shared operational path aimed at implementing a massive action of coordination between all available resources from the different responsibility centers to achieve timely and effective results. In particular, the Prefect drew the Mayors’ careful attention to the need to plan all the essential actions to reduce the risk – even just potential – of the ignition and spread of flames. In detail, the Prefect recommended that the Municipalities urgently plan the weeding operations of roadsides, parks, villas, as well as the cleaning of vegetation near wooded areas and strategic areas such as hospitals or residences for the elderly and, more generally , of all the areas close to the perimeter strips of the anthropized areas. Furthermore, the Prefect underlined the need to provide for the maintenance of water supply points and urged the Municipalities to proceed with the updating of municipal civil protection plans, with particular reference to interface fires, recommending timeliness and readiness in the activation of local civil protection structures, on days of heightened alert. Together with the Provincial Commander of the Fire Brigade, the Prefect also took the opportunity to highlight the importance of the adoption and activation by local authorities of the usual ordinances addressed to the population and aimed at dictating the rules of indefectible behavior to minimize the risk of fire, with particular attention to the cleaning of private land, an essential preventive action to reduce the risk of ignition and spread of flames in the perimeter strips of anthropic areas. In this regard, in addition to underlining the need to carry out a powerful control activity by the municipal police personnel on the effective compliance with the measures
provided for by the aforementioned ordinances, with the consequent imposition of the corresponding sanctions against violators, the Prefect renewed the invitation to local administrators to carry out a stringent awareness-raising action towards the residents of the areas most exposed to the risk of fire spread on the cleaning of the areas surrounding people and the entire community to collaborate by reporting any type of outbreak to the single emergency number (112). Furthermore, and again with a view to strengthening preventive action, the mayors were recommended to ensure, on days of high danger alert, particular vigilance, through adequate patrolling in the most critical areas exposed to fire risk also through the involvement of voluntary associations that can provide a valid contribution in terms of immediate sightings with consequent favorable effects related to the speed of intervention.