Fire in the Church of the Holy Trinity of Segovia (Spain): from response to recovery - an incident/disaster can be small... losses never are

The media shows major disasters, especially the serious losses suffered by the affected populations. Devastating earthquakes, relentless fires, cruel acts of war, and more destroy lives and undermine well-being and survival. But disasters also damage and destroy cultural heritage and represent an irreparable loss with important emotional and psychological connotations that affect us all, regardless of the country where they occur.

In the face of these major events, the “minor incidents” only deserve a few lines in the local press, but they also have important implications for the communities that live with them, as is the case of the fire at the Trinity Church in Segovia (Spain), which among others, seriously damaged the three works of historical-artistic importance.

All the technical aspects involved in the solution of the serious problem created by the fire and that affected the life of the parish, and the community are presented; for which it was necessary the coordinated action of the ecclesiastical holder, the territorial services of cultural heritage and the UGRECYL. Thanks to this coordination it was possible to quickly recover “normality”, save the affected artworks and contributing to minimize the feeling of emptiness and loss.
KEYWORDS: fires, cultural heritage, response. In PROCULTHER-NET 2 Project. Technical Bulletin N. 3, July 2024, pp 52-62. This contribution is completed by the paper “Fire in the Church of the Holy Trinity of Segovia: from response to recovery - restoration of three affected paintings” Martin Garcia, Juan Carlos - Centro de Conservación y Resturacion de Bienes Culturales de Castilla y León, Spain. Ibid, pp 63-71