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 News from Around Banderas Bay | October 2007 
Fire Department Makes Protection Strides
 Harold Sokolove - PVNN
| | The completion of a station house in San Vicente will mark the arrival, for the first time ever in Bahia de Banderas, of a Cruz Roja ambulance delegation. | 
| | Soon to be put into service is a reconditioned 100 foot aerial truck with a ladder-end water cannon for fighting fires in high-rise structures. | 
| | Bahia de Banderas fire fighters joined over 200 fire fighters from throughout Mexico and several Latin America countries for a fire school in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. | 
| | Gomez described the fire extinguishment drills as dangerous situations, but necessary to experience under the supervision of experts. | 
| | New protective clothing and fire fighting tools have produced a noticeable improvement in the morale of the department's members. | 
| | Fire fighters and paramedics, stationed in La Cruz, assist the local department for fire and rescue calls in the northern coastal part of the territory. | 
| | While two years ago the department's equipment consisted of a water tanker and a few pickup trucks to carry equipment, the department now boasts updated fire fighting vehicles. |
The municipality of Bahia de Banderas is in the State of Nayarit, just across the Ameca River from Puerto Vallarta in the State of Jalisco. The municipality covers a territory of about 775 square kms.
It has a varied topography, from jungles and forests of the Sierra Madre mountain range, small towns and villages surrounded by endless fields of farm produce and orchards of mango trees, to small cities inland and ringing Banderas Bay and up the Pacific coast.
Many of the towns and cities are experiencing unprecedented population growth thanks to job opportunities in the Vallarta area and a growing tourism demand in Nayarit, driving the development of houses, high rise hotels and condos around the bay and up the coastline, as part of the Mexican government's newest tourism hot spot promotion, "Riviera Nayarit."
All of this makes for an unusual mix of circumstances for securing the safety of the public. With limited financial resources, how best to adequately protect permanent residents, vacationing tourists and "snowbirds" throughout such a varied terrain?
Thanks to Dr. Jaime Cuevas, Presidente (Mayor) of the municipality; Dr Claudio Estrada, the municipality's Director of Proteccion Civil Y Bomberos; former Fire Chief Fco. Nava and the dedication of the fire fighters themselves, the municipality is now a much safer place to live, work and visit.
You don't have to look back many years to recognize how far the fire department of Bahia de Banderas has come in protecting the public. Only in more recent times have fire fighting and rescue services been looked upon as a necessity in Mexican cities and towns - and Bahia de Banderas was no exception.
The somewhat ragtag band of fire fighters of two years ago has been replaced with a group of men and women dedicated to professionalism, pride and proficiency in their job; some tremendous strides have been made.
For instance, for the second time in less than a year, a contingent of Bahia de Banderas fire fighters joined over 200 fire fighters from throughout Mexico and several Latin America countries for a fire school in San Luis Potosi, Mexico.
According to Capt. Eulalio Gomez, 5 members of the department were authorized to attend the 4-day school this latest session.
"The men were in classes of about 20 fire fighters, with one specialty teacher and four assistants. The students rotated from lesson to lesson," Gomez explained. "This was all work, no play. Classes began at 7 am and ended at 9 pm... and then there was reading homework after that. I think the men enjoyed the hard work," Gomez added.
Gomez described the fire extinguishment lessons as dangerous situations, but necessary to experience under the supervision of experts. The men practiced techniques with fires in gasoline and gas tanker trucks, a 3-story structure, a simulated refinery and chemical laboratory. They also worked with various fire-fighting foam mixes and experienced a "smoke house," in which the students had to crawl through a smoke-filled structure with only a hose line (no air bottle) to perform a rescue or locate a fire source.
While just two years ago the department's equipment consisted of a water tanker and a few pickup trucks to carry equipment, the department now boasts updated fire fighting vehicles, including several ATV's for beach patrols, a quick attack mini-pumper and a recently-acquired fire truck with pumping capability, ladders, hoses, water tank and equipment storage, including a state-of-the-art Jaws of Life emergency extrication tool.
Soon to be put into service is a reconditioned 100 foot aerial truck with a ladder-end water cannon for fighting fires in high-rise structures and a heavy duty pumper which was previously used at the Puerto Vallarta International Airport to combat aircraft fires. In addition, new protective clothing and fire fighting tools have been acquired. All of this has produced a noticeable improvement in the morale of the department's members.
On the rescue side of the department's function, several ambulance units have been purchased so that they can be deployed to new or in-the-planning-stage fire stations, which would be scattered around the municipality.
Medical supplies now fill the shelves in one of the fire department's offices. The previously mentioned ATV's are used to carry paramedics on patrol of the municipality's beaches during major holiday weekends. A continuous schedule of first-aid training classes is required for all of the paramedics.
One local civil association, Los Amigos de Bucerias, is set to make a donation to the municipality of 3 AED's (Automatic External Defibrillator,) medical units used in cases of sudden cardiac arrest, to be carried in the ambulances or on fire department personnel who are on duty at large crowd events, such as festivals and concerts.
The State of Nayarit has also assigned a delegation of fire fighters and paramedics, stationed in La Cruz, to assist the local department, when called upon, for fire and rescue calls in the northern coastal part of the territory.
And finally, the completion of a station house in San Vicente will mark the arrival, for the first time ever in Bahia de Banderas, of a Cruz Roja ambulance delegation.
The healthy combination of modern equipment, on-going training and public safety planning for the future makes Bahia de Banderas a safe place to be by most any standard. But if, heaven forbid, you should need emergency assistance, the phone number to call for fire or emergency medical service is 066. |
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