In an emergency situation, there is no time for hesitation, and each minute of delay could mean another life lost or home destroyed. It is critical to establish organization, structure, and a detailed plan of action prepared in advance to prevent as much damage as possible. Paraguay’s emergency and fire response crew lacked some of these vital elements, and ICMA knew it could not overlook this nation’s urgent need for safety assistance.

In February of 2011, the United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) granted ICMA $85,000 to help improve rescue and fire response in Paraguay. Over the next few months, ICMA implemented this project by assessing the firefighting command structure and equipment and providing a training course. ICMA’s assessment and training consultant for Paraguay, Ricardo Garcia, a retired captain from the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department, led the project and developed a strategy plan building on his 27 years of experience in this field.

Since ICMA wanted to identify the capacity and capability shortfalls of the volunteer firefighter organization, Cuerpo de Bomberos Voluntarios del Paraguay (CBVP), Mr. Garcia first conducted an incident command assessment. He used a questionnaire to evaluate the CBVP’s overall capability to respond to an incident, visited the 12 CBVP stations in Asuncion and the Central District where he conducted interviews, and examined their personal protection equipment. He then met with the national command staff to review their command structure, command and control systems, response plans, and firefighter training curriculum and training documentation.

Mr. Garcia discovered that the most critical shortfall in the CBVP’s incident command equipment was the lack of radio communications. Most of the CBVP didn’t have access to radio communications, and the members relied on land lines and cell phones. However, radios are imperative for firefighter safety and serve as the most effective way to communicate during an emergency. It is impossible to have command and control in an urgent situation without a means of communicating orders, receiving and disseminating information, and providing feedback.

Finally, after taking these evaluations into account, Mr. Garcia developed a four-day training course for 24 participants that culminated with a full exercise on the last day designed to test the knowledge of the firefighters and highlight the work that still needs to be done. This exercise occurred in a local hospital where the firefighters were required to determine the command structure, assign resources according to the objectives and structure, and plan and implement the necessary tactics to conduct an evacuation for a fire attack. The exercise allowed the participants to practice their newly learned skills from the training course, and by the end, they proved to be more organized and efficient in their actions.

According to Mr. Garcia, “The program was instrumental in designing and implementing several of the courses the CBVP uses in their recruit training. I have watched their department grow from a few companies around Asuncion, the capital, to close to 50 companies in most of the major cities of Paraguay. I knew quite a few of the participants in the course having worked with them all those years, and although I had not been back to Paraguay in over five years, it was like being back home again.”

For more information, visit the Paraguay page on the ICMA International website and the International Development topic area in the Knowledge Network, or contact international@icma.org.