The Girona volunteer firefighters have announced that they are no longer “available” and stop their activity in response to the “inaction” of the Interior.
The spokesman for the Federation of Volunteer Firefighters of Catalonia, Miquel Mesegué, explained that a consultation has been made to which the ten parks in the region have adhered and that the forecast is that the procedure will be repeated throughout the territory. In fact, the Benifallet park (Baix Ebre) has already joined. All this comes after in June the Ministry presented to the Council of Volunteer Firefighters a plan to strengthen the body that did not convince the group. The department warned that the dialogue remains open and that the services will continue to be provided by the official parks.
The relationship between the volunteer firefighters and the General Directorate for Prevention, Fire Fighting and Rescue continues to be tense. The Girona volunteer firefighters have been the first to announce that they will cease to be operational, but according to the Federation of Volunteer Firefighters of Catalonia (FBVCat), other parks throughout the territory could follow the Girona example in the next few hours. In fact, the Benifallet park (Baix Ebre) has already joined.
However, sources from the Council of Volunteer Firefighters of Lleida, the territory where there are more parks of this type, a total of 22, have explained that at the moment they do not plan to join the protest. All this after level 3 of the Alpha Plan has been activated in 23 municipalities due to a new episode of high danger of forest fire.
The decision of the Girona parks came after last Saturday the FVBCat published a statement announcing possible protest actions after the meeting that the entity held with the Interior did not end as desired. “We have spent many years of latent and continuous discontent,” explained Miquel Messegué, spokesman for the FBVCat, who said that the members of the body “are tired” of seeing how the long-awaited improvements are “extending over time.” He assured that the collective is not locked in a band, but that it is willing to continue negotiating. However, he has demanded “a commitment in writing” from the Interior and a calendar.
Last June, the Directorate General for Prevention, Fire Fighting and Rescue presented a Plan to the Volunteer Firefighters Council to strengthen the body that did not convince its representatives.
Sources from the organ have indicated that the document did not include the main historical claims of the group and that they have been dragging on for “25 years.” Among them are those that refer to greater health, social and legal protection. These aspects are related to the compensation that the troops receive in case of sick leave, disability, death and other issues such as health insurance or the fact that they are recognized as agents of the authority. Another of the points of disagreement is the one that refers to the employment of the entire body, made up of 1,360 troops.
Sources from the Directorate General for Prevention, Fire Fighting and Rescue, remarked that the dialogue remains open and recalled that a new meeting with the representatives of the Consell is scheduled for next September 28, in which a second proposal for a Plan of strengthening. They insisted that despite the fact that some volunteer parks close, the service will continue to be provided through those of officials. In Catalonia there are 145 fire stations, 71 professionals and 74 volunteers.
