Interior Ministry activates national operation with 33,600 officers for 12 August solar eclipse

The Minister for the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, has chaired the establishment of the State Coordination and Direction Committee (CECOD) for the national operation prepared to guarantee the safety and wellbeing of people travelling across the northern half of the Iberian Peninsula for the solar eclipse on 12 August. The operation involves the mobilisation of more than 33,600 National Police and Civil Guard officers.

Authorities’ forecasts put the number of journeys to and from the more than 350 observation points identified in the geographical strip from which it will be possible to observe the eclipse in its entirety at between 1.8 and 2.9 million. In response to this scenario, the operation will strengthen coordination between administrations, road safety, mobility and forest-fire prevention.

Interior Ministry urges utmost caution over fire risk

During the launch of the CECOD, Grande-Marlaska urged the public to show “responsibility and the utmost caution”, as the astronomical event will coincide with a period of high forest-fire risk. “High temperatures, the accumulated dryness of vegetation and the increased pressure on natural spaces caused by the expected journeys make it essential to step up preventive measures,” he said.

The analyses carried out by the Directorate-General for Civil Protection and Emergencies have identified numerous observation points located in areas at very high risk of forest fires. For this reason, the minister stressed that enjoying the eclipse must be compatible with protecting the natural environment and strictly complying with preventive measures.

The Specific Civil Protection Plan identifies five priority areas of concern: large crowds, potential impacts on mobility, possible saturation of telecommunications networks, forest fires and health risks related to heat or inappropriate observation of the eclipse.

Command post at the National Emergency Centre

One of the main measures planned is the creation of a Unified Command Post at the National Emergency Centre (CENEM). This body will facilitate operational coordination in the days preceding the eclipse and during the astronomical event itself.

The plan includes a period of enhanced monitoring during the preceding days. On 12 August, the operational and meteorological situation will be monitored continuously, with the ability to activate whatever response mechanisms may be necessary in the event of an emergency.

As the eclipse will affect numerous autonomous communities and require resources of different kinds, information-sharing mechanisms will also be strengthened. The system will involve Government delegations and sub-delegations, regional emergency services, the Security Forces and Corps, and strategic operators.

The aim is for the administrations to have a shared view of the situation and to be able to respond quickly to any incident related to crowds, journeys, heat, fires or changing weather conditions.

123 exclusion zones and enhanced mobility measures

As part of the plan, 123 exclusion zones have been established. In these areas, access will be restricted or prohibited because of environmental circumstances or obstacles that would prevent an adequate evacuation if one were required.

The Secretary of State for Security approved the Special Security Plan on 2 June, setting out the basic operational guidelines for Security Force deployments. These measures are aligned with regional and municipal plans.

The operation will focus on prevention and strengthening the police presence in observation areas. Particular attention will also be paid to the main access routes and return routes, with the aim of ensuring orderly mobility during journeys to and from the sites.

Monitoring will generally cover the main land transport routes that may be affected by increased mobility. Security will also be reinforced at transport hubs, ports and airports, as will the protection of the coastline and maritime space.

In the latter area, authorities expect an increase in the number of vessels in waters close to the coast to observe the eclipse. Consequently, 20 Maritime Service vessels, 11 in the Mediterranean and nine in the Atlantic, will form part of specific prevention operations in the affected coastal and island areas.

More than 33,600 officers mobilised

The total number of police personnel assigned to services and operations related to the eclipse exceeds 33,600 officers. Most of the deployment will be provided by the Civil Guard, with more than 24,200 personnel, owing to the impact of the risks in rural areas and the scale of the traffic operation.

The Civil Guard’s Traffic Group will allocate almost 2,500 personnel to these duties. Their work will focus on the main access routes to observation areas, return itineraries and roads likely to experience the greatest volume of traffic.

The National Police and Civil Guard will also increase their services for visitors. In particular, assistance will be strengthened at 26 Foreign Tourist Assistance Services (SATE) located in areas within the path of totality.

These services will also have mobile offices and enhanced information provision in different languages. The Security Forces and Corps will disseminate preventive messages in a coordinated manner through the AlertCops app, their social media accounts and their websites.

Coordination between different bodies

The CECOD meeting, held remotely, was attended by officials from the Interior Ministry and other bodies involved in preparing the operation. They included the Secretary-General for Civil Protection and Emergencies, Virginia Barcones; the Director-General for Coordination and Studies at the Secretary of State for Security, Eugenio Pereiro; and the Director-General of Traffic, Pere Navarro.

Members of the operational deputy directorates of the National Police and Civil Guard also took part, along with representatives of the National Security Department of the Prime Minister’s Office; the Directorate-General for Defence Policy and the Military Emergency Unit (UME) of the Defence Ministry.

The CECOD also includes the Directorate-General for Biodiversity, Forests and Desertification and the State Meteorological Agency, both part of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge.

The coordination of all these bodies has been designed to deal with an event that will bring hundreds of thousands of people together in urban, rural, natural and maritime spaces. Authorities have made prevention one of the central pillars of the operation, particularly given the combination of high temperatures, dry vegetation and high levels of mobility.

The operation will remain active in the days leading up to the eclipse and throughout the day itself, monitoring the operational and meteorological situation and maintaining the capacity to respond to any incidents that may occur.