An unseen line of defense. Fifty-nine officers on the front line of the docks, backed by five team leaders and five service chiefs, hold the logistics trench of Tenerife’s largely unknown port facilities. Their setting allows for neither respite nor pauses: when cayucos on the Canary Islands route come into view at the harbor entrance, the port’s machinery does not stop; it changes. The Port Police absorb the humanitarian crisis’s first operational impact, guarding maritime borders and managing the boat holding facility in Granadilla while commercial traffic continues uninterrupted.
Institutional tribute at the Teatro Leal
The media silence surrounding this force was broken in La Laguna. The Teatro Leal hosted an awards ceremony honoring the La Laguna Local Police during the 185th anniversary of the municipal force and the feast of Saint Michael the Archangel. Chief Superintendent Jesús González Gutiérrez presented the distinction to Agustín Ávila, head of the Port Police, and Diego Herrero, service chief in Granadilla, on behalf of the entire staff of the Port Authority of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The award recognizes technical resolve in emergency control, the safeguarding of the cayuco holding facility and cooperation among the different forces.
Agustín Ávila watches the activity on the dock with the unhurried gaze of someone who knows that the sea never rests, maintaining order on the asphalt where others see only ships coming and going, carrying on his shoulders the invisible weight of a quiet responsibility that seeks neither applause nor statues, only the certainty of having guarded the port’s gate for one more day.
Diego Herrero gauges the pulse of the Granadilla dock amid the relentless wind, knowing that true protection requires composure and experience in the shadows, coordinating the flow of people and vessels while maintaining, without fuss or affectation, the quiet firmness that keeps the safety of the entire port facility afloat.
An administrative police force at the heart of critical infrastructure
Far removed from the standard role of ordinary public-security policing, the Port Police operate as a highly specialized administrative police force. Their purpose is to monitor and oversee maritime and land-based operations and services to ensure that commercial activity is carried out safely, efficiently and effectively. Their remit covers the protection of people, environmental safety, industrial risk prevention, compliance with data-protection regulations and the continuity of essential services at the facilities of Santa Cruz, Granadilla, La Palma, Los Cristianos, La Gomera and El Hierro.
Chain of command and operational distribution across the island facilities
The operational structure falls under the Port Operations Department and the Zone Chiefs of each territorial division. At the operational helm, the head of the Port Police plans the service, organizes the staff and coordinates compliance with the law in the service area. Daily coverage is provided by five service chiefs who direct the geographical shifts, supported by five team leaders responsible for leading the 59 officers in the field and assuming command in the absence of their superiors.
This deployment covers everything from opening, safeguarding and monitoring facilities to traffic-safety control and access to port areas. In addition, officers protect the safety of cargo, passengers and employees in close cooperation with the justice system and the State security forces.
Despite staff shortages caused by retirements, promotions and transfers still awaiting replacement, the force takes on the most demanding interventions. When the port becomes the scene of incidents that go beyond purely administrative jurisdiction, the Port Police act as first responders, containing the risk until the competent forces arrive. This first-response role has proved decisive during the resurgence of the migration crisis, establishing the officers as the cornerstone of maritime security on the province’s docks.
The article The Invisible Army Guarding Tenerife’s Ports: The Port Police was first published on canarymaritime.com.
