Briefing
Oviedo, 10 October 2026 — During two training days this week, 31 members of the mountain rescue groups of the Guardia Civil honed their skills in rescuing people on large rock faces in the area of Picu Urriellu (Naranjo de Bulnes) in the Picos de Europa The exercises took place on 6 and 9 October, with units from Cangas de Onís and Mieres (Asturias), Potes (Cantabria), Sabero (Province of León) and Puebla de Trives (Province of Ourense) taking part.
The aim of the training days was to update procedures for operations in exposed terrain and improve coordination with air support. Exercises included helicopter winch transfers, setting up safe landing and pick-up points on steep faces, inserting and extracting rescue teams, and rope evacuations. Possible rescue routes on the different faces of Picu Urriellu were also surveyed, and procedures between cockpit and ground crews were rehearsed.
Due to poor weather, the first training day had to be moved from the rock face to a nearby quarry site by Mirador del Fitu On the second day, the rescue teams set up a command and assembly centre at Mirador Pedro Udaondo in Asiego (municipality of Cabrales), from where teams were flown by helicopter to the training area.
The Guardia Civil and regional media gave consistent accounts of the proceedings, locations and number of participants; there were no actual operations. Regular practical training weeks of this kind are considered essential in the Picos de Europa, where the busy climbing and hiking area repeatedly requires rescues on large rock faces, often involving air support.
Background: The units involved belong to the Guardia Civil’s Servicio de Montaña and are responsible for technical rescues in high and mid-altitude mountain areas, including rock and ice rescues, search operations and first aid in alpine conditions. Regular training helps standardise procedures, develop specialist skills and reduce response times, with the aim of improving the safety of rescue personnel and people taking part in mountain sports.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).