The solidarity of the people of Lanzarote continues to reach the Valencians who have lost everything due to the DANA. Four firefighters from Lanzarote have traveled to Alfafar, Valencia, to show their support to those affected by the DANA. The team of firefighters arrived in the affected area in the early hours of Monday and are staying in a hotel in Valencia capital, where they have been working since then with hardly any rest to clean garages and basements.
They have focused on pumping tasks in underground areas and checking the cars that are there in case there is anyone inside them. "Most of the buildings we are examining have basements and underground parking lots and there are residents who tell us that they are their vehicles but we still have to look at them just in case," explains Domingo Crespo, head of firefighters in Lanzarote.
"I had seen images of the tragedy on television but experiencing it on site is much worse, it is a desolate panorama because there is garbage in all the streets, cars embedded and uprooted trees," says Crespo.
The amount of mud makes the extraction of water from flooded areas more complicated. "It will take a long time for everything to return to normal because we are pumping water but it does not drain well due to the amount of mud and we have to do it drop by drop. We are looking for a place to drain that water because the sewers do not have that much absorption capacity," he declares.
Due to dust, strong odors and possible infections that arise, volunteers and other personnel must protect themselves during cleaning tasks. "We are protected with masks and when we enter garages and basements we notice strong odors due to the amount of accumulated garbage and stagnant water for many days," he explains.
The presence of firefighters in the affected area will be for a long time and they will have to make relays and bring in more personnel. "Right now there are two more colleagues on their way by boat to be able to bring two vehicles," he reveals.
Despite the enormous tension that exists in more affected areas such as Paiporta or Catarroja, in the area where the firefighters are located the residents are calmer. "In the place where we are working I have seen people resigned to the situation they are experiencing and there are personnel in the street, also firefighters from Malaga and I think the population is calmer," he points out.
"The Valencians are very grateful for the help and are very surprised when they see that there are people from the Canary Islands collaborating," says the head of firefighters.
