A new follower of @WildfireToday on Twitter, @m_sanchez_ruiz, posted the above photo Friday with this caption:
Vehículos contra incendios adaptados con palas quitanieves del dispositivo INFOCA. Esta semana han intervenido en Jaén.
Google Translate translated it like this:
Fire Vehicles fitted with snow plows INFOCA device. This week intervened in Jaén.
I’m thinking the photo was taken near Jaen in southern Spain. Wikipedia says the elevation there is 573 m (1,880 ft). A little research into “INFOCA”, again with the help of Google Translate, yielded this:
Canario Plan for Civil Protection and Emergency Management for Forest Fires
We would like to see other photos of fire vehicles being re-purposed during the off-season.
HI Bill, good to see you spread also news from my country, thanks for that :-).
INFOCA is related to the Andalusian fire service, one of the best in Europe. In fact, 2007 Wildfire conference was held in Seville for a reason.
4000 professionals, 120 engines, 12 planes and 26 helicopters during summer season. The terrain can be somewhat like San Bernardino Mts, with our own Sierra Nevada climbing 10000 ft just 30 miles from the sea, and yes, although hot in summer, winter can be quite hard.
Thanks for your great web!
Thanks Joaquin. It’s always interesting to hear what fire professionals around the world are doing.