Puente Alto, a small suburban town on the outskirts of the capital. A hundred years ago, its fledgling agricultural and industrial activities flourished amid a unique landscape: adobe and wooden houses spaced relatively far apart, with wide walkways where passersby could shelter from the sun or rain. During the week, the days were peaceful, interrupted only by the “whistle” from the paper mill, signaling to its workers when to work, eat, or rest.
However, in late December 1928, that tranquility was shattered: a raging fire consumed Mr. Fernando López’s wooden shack. The neighborhood, as expected, was plunged into the natural commotion generated by such news spreading by word of mouth. In those years, there was no alarm system, except for the church bells, which on that occasion were rung as never before by the late priest Jacinto Núñez Barbosa, who with authority and judgment ordered the first firefighting measures.
This event led to the founding of the First Company on August 2, 1929, and subsequently, the Second Company was established on April 25, 1935. The following year, with the aim of strengthening the work of both Companies, the Puente Alto Fire Department was founded on September 29, 1936, to guide the institution’s future.
