​Government of Spain activates coordination protocol to provide support to families of victims from plane crash in France

News - 2015.3.24

  • x: opens new window
  • Whatsapp: opens new window
  • Linkedin: opens new window
  • Send: opens new window

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría expressed the Government of Spain's solidarity with the families of the passengers on board the Airbus owned by Germanwings that crashed into the Trois Évechés mountain range in France.

The President of the Government, Mariano Rajoy, chaired the first meeting of the crisis committee at Moncloa Palace, together with the Vice-President of the Government. The meeting was also attended by representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Justice, Home Affairs, Public Works, the Presidency, and Health, Social Services and Equality.

The Vice-President of the Government said that the committee will meet again tomorrow morning, unless circumstances dictate otherwise, "to continue assessing the situation and to take any decisions that may be necessary in order to best support the families of the passengers".

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría announced that Mariano Rajoy has spoken with the President of the Republic of France, to whom he confirmed a visit on Wednesday to the crash site together with the President of the Regional Government of Catalonia, Artur Mas. The Minister for Public Works, Ana Pastor, has already arrived in Marseille and will travel to the crash site with her French and German counterparts. Furthermore, the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, expressed his solidarity to Mariano Rajoy on behalf of the European institutions.

The Spanish Official State Gazette will publish a decree tonight declaring three days of national mourning. One minute's silence has also been called at all public offices at midday on Wednesday.

The Minister for Home Affairs, Jorge Fernández Díaz, the State Secretary for Infrastructures, Julio Gómez Pomar, the Councillor for Home Affairs of the Regional Government of Catalonia, Ramón Espadalert, the Government Representative in Catalonia, Llanos de Luna, and the Director-General for Civil Protection and Emergencies, Juan Díaz Cruz, held a meeting with the Vice-Chairman of Lufthansa aimed at speeding up the process to identify the passengers as far as possible.

Coordination protocol

The Vice-President of the Government said that the coordination protocol for providing support to the victims of accidents has been activated in order to ensure "medical care, psychological support and proper information".

The Under-secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Luis Aguilera, chaired the State Committee on Support for Victims. The website of the Victims Support Office can be accessed directly from the official website of the Ministry of Public Works. Telephone numbers, action guidelines and information on rights can be found on this website, which is aimed at improving the support offered to the families of the passengers.

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría also said that various cooperation mechanisms have been established and, specifically, steps are being taken through the Consular Emergency Unit. The consulates in Düsseldorf and Marseille have been activated, as have the Embassies in Paris and Berlin. Levels of coordination have been established at both a ministerial level and with various public authorities, especially the Regional Government of Catalonia.

Spanish victims

Pool MoncloaWhen asked about the Spanish citizens who were travelling on board the aircraft that crashed, the Vice-President of the Government said that the only information available at this time is the number of Spanish surnames among the passengers. "Checks need to be performed, by the airline itself and the various travel agencies, that will allow us to confirm not only the Spanish nationals who were on board but also those from other countries who could be listed on that passenger manifest", she explained.

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría stressed that, under EU law and Spanish regulations, only the airline can communicate that list to the families. "And in order to then make it public, the airline needs their consent, or at least a lack of objection", she added. The Government of Spain is lending its "utmost support" to the airline, via the State law enforcement agencies, so that this process can be completed as soon as possible.

As regards the accident investigation, the Vice-President of the Government said that the appearance of at least one of the black boxes from the aircraft - a fact reported by the French authorities - will be very important in determining the cause of the crash.

The President of France has accepted the collaboration offered by Mariano Rajoy to take part in the investigation, which "will also enable us to gain first-hand information on this matter and collaborate as effectively as possible on this task", explained Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría. The Government of Spain has offered a team of forensic police officers to the French authorities, made up of officers from the Spanish National Police and the Spanish Guardia Civil, which will travel to the crash site as soon as possible.