The Government of the Canary Islands has offered the State a maximum capacity of up to 19 specialized professionals to collaborate in the international response to the emergency registered in Venezuela. The proposal will be sent to the National Emergency Center (CENEM), which will forward it to the European Civil Protection Mechanism, the body responsible for coordinating the capacities provided by the different countries and determining, based on the needs identified on the ground, which resources will ultimately be mobilized.
The Directorate General of Emergencies of the Government of the Canary Islands has coordinated the compilation of this offer of capacities by contacting the different professional associations, with the aim of identifying specialized personnel available for an eventual international mobilization. As a result of this work, a proposal has been formed consisting of a maximum capacity of 19 professionals: five forensic doctors (2 anthropologists and 3 forensic pathologists), three architects, three psychologists, and eight social workers.
The proposal submitted by the Canary Islands constitutes a maximum capacity. It will be the Directorate General of Civil Protection and Emergencies, through CENEM and in coordination with the European Civil Protection Mechanism, that will finally determine the profiles and the number of personnel who, if applicable, are mobilized, taking into account the needs on the ground and the capacities provided by the other autonomous communities.
In case of being selected for deployment, the contingent will be organized under a single leadership and will act according to the guidelines of the Directorate General of Civil Protection and Emergencies, CENEM, and the competent Venezuelan authorities.
The operation has been designed to guarantee its deployment capacity under adequate conditions. Having previously coordinated accommodation and maintenance through the Canary Houses in Venezuela, each member of the contingent will carry their personal belongings, individual protection equipment (IPE), and basic consumables necessary for the performance of their duties.
Forensic medicine professionals would provide technical support in victim identification tasks, the performance of forensic medical examinations, and the management of post-mortem information, always under the competent judicial and forensic authority. For their part, the architecture team would be responsible for carrying out initial visual assessments of the condition of buildings and their habitability, would contribute to prioritizing necessary inspections, and would provide non-expert technical advice.
The device also incorporates psychosocial care specialists. Psychologists would offer psychological first aid, crisis intervention, support in bereavement processes, and assistance to both the affected population and the intervention teams.
In turn, social work staff would assess the most urgent needs, identify situations of particular vulnerability, facilitate orientation and referral to available resources, and contribute to the community support of affected individuals.
With this initiative, the Government of the Canary Islands reaffirms its commitment to international cooperation and solidarity and to a country with which it maintains deep historical, family, and social ties. Thousands of Canarian families found a place in Venezuela to build their future, and those ties continue to be part of the shared history between both territories. From that commitment, the Canary Islands makes specialized technical capabilities available to the National Civil Protection System and the European Civil Protection Mechanism that can contribute to the care of the affected population.
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