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Malaga firefighters will have a new 54-metre-high turntable ladder that will reach a height of 17 storeys. The province will join the exclusive club of cities with the addition of the new resource, such as Madrid and Zaragoza.
The ladder will reach 12 metres higher than the highest one, owned by Malaga city council, but which has been out of order for very long periods of time. It is currently being repaired in Madrid.
Provincial deputy for fire safety Manuel Marmolejo told SUR the idea is for it to provide service to the whole province, including Malaga city where more high-rise buildings are cropping up. Francisco Soriano, technical director of the CPB provincial fire brigade consortium, said an agreement for shared use could be considered. He also said it is not yet known where the vehicle will be headquartered, and that an operational study will be carried out to choose the best location.
The tender puts the cost of the vehicle at 1.6 million euros. It will have to be purpose-built and has a delivery period of one and a half years.
Soriano said the ladder is automatic and equipped with a lift. Three people can be lowered at a time for rescues at height without having to lower the basket to the ground, which saves precious time.
The machine will also have its own water pumping system. There is therefore no need for a pump truck. The ladder itself can be connected to the hydrant network and is self-sufficient. It will also be equipped with a dry standpipe. It will also be fitted with a water monitor to control the operation from below. "These are a series of extras that require a high investment but are very important," Soriano said.
To provide an idea, 24-metre ladders can reach eight floors; while 32-metre ladders can reach up to 11 storeys, and the 54-metre ladder will be able to reach up to 17. Apart from Malaga city, the whole of the western Costa del Sol and the area of Torre del Mar in the Axarquia have high-rise buildings, many of them hotels.
The fire brigade consortium will be strengthened from January, with the addition of Torremolinos. This will bring the number of ladders now available to seven. There are two of 32 metres, in Vélez-Málaga and Torremolinos, and another of the same height in Antequera. The remaining four are 27 metres. In total, there are 14 fire stations attached to the provincial body. "Next year we are going to invite tenders for another more compact, 32-metre, state-of-the-art ladder," Soriano added.
The debate on high-storey rescues is topical in Malaga city and is at the centre of some of the demands that municipal firefighters have been making, especially due to the continuous breakdowns of the province's highest ladder and the death of a person in a 15-storey building in Ciudad Jardín in April 2017.
New buildings are often equipped with advanced systems, dry columns and special exits, while the danger in older buildings is multiplied. The 42-metre turntable ladder in Malaga city was purchased 19 years ago. At the time, it was repaired for 130,000 euros in Brescia (Italy) at the Magirus factory. The ladder which can reach a height of up to 13 storeys cost 900,000 euros and started experiencing major problems in 2014.
The fire brigade in Malaga has five vehicles for various heights: the 42-metre vehicle, three 32-metre vehicles and another with a height of 20 metres. Of these, two are at full capacity, another with restricted functionality and another two under repair, according to Pedro Pacheco, spokesman for the Andalusian firefighters' union, who is once again calling for the use of Unespa funds for the improvement and acquisition of resources.
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