Helicopter and Corralejo II: imminent medical supplies for Fuerteventura
The Cabildo and the Canary Islands Health Department have scheduled the start of Corralejo II before the summer of 2026 and set the helicopter’s entry into service for this March. The CAE (Emergency Care Center) in La Lajita is also moving forward, this time with the award of the project drafting, although the Health Department is delayed after announcing the award in December 2025.
The Health Department of the Canary Islands Government has updated the Cabildo and the municipalities of Fuerteventura on the forecast of investments and health provisions for the island. The construction of the Corralejo II Health Center is about to be awarded, so the work is expected to begin before the summer of 2026, the Cabildo announced after receiving a visit from the regional health minister, Esther Monzón.
The meeting was attended by:
- Lola García, President of the Cabildo of Fuerteventura
- Tomás Pérez, Director of the Island Health Area
- Víctor Alonso, Island Health Councillor
- María Naranjo, Manager of Fuerteventura Health Services
- Representatives of all municipal councils and the spokespersons of the political groups represented in the island corporation.
The Cabildo and the municipalities welcomed the health minister.
Corralejo II Health Center – Opening Before Summer
The Corralejo II Health Center will provide early, high‑quality care that matches the island’s demographic growth, “thereby meeting a historic demand thanks to inter‑administrative coordination among the Cabildo, the Canary Islands Government, the municipalities and the Fuerteventura Health Area,” said Lola García. This joint effort drives a €3.4 million infrastructure plan to ensure primary‑care resources are available in every municipality.
Drafting of the La Lajita CAE Project – Award Process Delayed
Another priority resource, the La Lajita Emergency Care Center, is currently in the project‑drafting award stage. “It is an urgent infrastructure for an island with long distances like ours, improving health care especially in the southern part of the island,” García added.
Medical Helicopter – Service to Begin This Month
Lola García also celebrated that the medicalised helicopter based in Fuerteventura will soon become a reality, expected to start operating before the end of March. “This represents a significant improvement in inter‑island transport, and we must continue to enhance urgent medical transport with two new life‑support ambulances on Fuerteventura.”
The Canary Islands Health Department had announced the tender for the La Lajita CAE in December 2025, which explains the current delay in the award process.
Hospital Visit – Increased Staffing
During the morning, officials toured the General Hospital of Fuerteventura, where new services such as the Home Hospitalisation Unit (HADO) have already assisted 13 patients, delivering hospital‑level medical and nursing care at home.
“We value the effort of the Fuerteventura Health Services Management in gradually adding 66 professionals, half of whom are physicians of various specialties, strengthening our care capacity since the start of the legislative term in June 2023,” said Health Minister Esther Monzón.
According to Monzón, the staff boost has already impacted care quality:
- Surgical waiting lists have fallen by 15 % during the current term.
- The average wait for an intervention has dropped from 80 days to 53 days, nearly a month’s reduction.
La Lajita CAE and the Medical Helicopter
Monzón highlighted the tender for the La Lajita CAE project drafting, describing it as “a new care resource that will answer a historic demand of Fuerteventura’s population and aligns with the Canary Health Service’s strategy to bring specialised care closer to residents of the island’s southern health zone.”
She also emphasized the achievement of adding a third medicalised helicopter for the archipelago, based in Fuerteventura and also serving Lanzarote and La Graciosa. “This is a very important step for strengthening urgent medical transport across the entire autonomous community,” Monzón concluded in the official statement.