Government of Navarre declares level 2 emergency due to eclipse

On Monday, the Government of Navarre ordered the elevation of the Territorial Civil Protection Plan to emergency level 2 due to the solar eclipse, including beste, large crowds, high forest fire risk, high temperatures and the possibility of congestion of traffic before and after the event.

An Emergency Advisory Council has also been set up to monitor the event and provide a coordinated response to any incidents, as indicated by the Government itself.

The committee was chaired by the Councillor for the Interior, Public Service and Justice, Inma Jurío, and was attended by the Government Delegate in Navarre, Alicia Echeverría, the Counsellor for Universities, Innovation and Digital Transformation, Juan Luis García, and representatives of the Interior, Health, Local Administration, Telecommunications and Digitization, Transport, Public Works and Environment, as well as well as the Foral Police, the Civil Guard and the National Police.

The security apparatus to be deployed on Wednesday will have a total of 1,165 members . On the part ofthe Government of Navarre, the operation will consist of 454 officers of the Foral Police, 122 of the Navarre Fire Service, 25 of the Civil Protection Service and 6 of the Navarre Traffic.

Bans on motor vehicles

On Monday, the Foral Order was also signed, temporarily prohibiting the movement of motor vehicles, including electric vehicles,forest tracks and rural roadson non-urbanisable land between 00:00 on August 12and 07:00 on August 13.

This measure has been taken because the authorities foresee that the population will travel to high areas, wilderness areas or forest areas, which are usually accessed through the network of forest tracks and rural roads.

"Motor vehicles create collective hazards in these areas which, together with weather conditions at extreme temperatures, water stress in vegetation and high forest fire risk rates during the summer, make it essential to take extraordinary measures," explains the Foral Government. However, the Order provides exceptions to guarantee the rights of residents and productive sectors.

Official observation points

This Monday there was also a meeting with the mayors and officials of the twenty towns and areas of Arguedas, the visitor centre Aguilares and El Ferial — both in the Bardenas — Buñuel, Carcar, Cascante, Castejón, Corella, Fitero, Larraga, Lerín, Lodosa, Marzilla, Mendabia, Azkoitia, Ribaforada, Sendaviva Park, Tafalla, Tudela and Viana.

At that meeting, they were informed of the level of emergency and the ban on movement on forest tracks and rural roads, as well as of measures to minimise the risk of fire, control agglomerations and ensure the safety of visitors, as well as measures to ensure mobility before and after the eclipse, as well as the importance of coordination and cooperation in emergencies.