MIAMI — Miami-Dade Fire Rescue announced on Friday that the U.S. State Department “activated” the department’s search-and-rescue team to work in Venezuela after the two earthquakes.
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The fire rescue personnel with the Urban Search and Rescue, or USAR, and Florida Task Force 1, or FLTF1, which includes 80 specialists, will support search and rescue operations.
“We know that many people in our community have family, friends, and loved ones in Venezuela, which makes this mission especially meaningful to us,” a MDFR spokesperson wrote in a statement. “We deploy with a single purpose: to provide hope and assist those who have been affected during this difficult time.”
The FLTF1 “Type I” team also includes six canine teams and experts in 19 areas, including command and control, technical search, structural evaluation and stabilization, planning and technical information, advanced medical care, hazardous materials mitigation, tactical communications, logistics, safety, and technical rescue.
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The highly trained teams have responded to disasters around the world, including hurricanes, explosions and major earthquakes. Members of Task Force 1 were among the rescuers who searched through rubble following the devastating Haiti earthquake in 2010.
At the Air Force Reserve base in Homestead, crews were loading pallets with water purification systems, generators and other equipment needed for the mission. The task forces are designed to be self-sufficient while operating in disaster zones.
The State Department had already deployed two urban search and rescue teams from Los Angeles and Fairfax, Virginia, that had worked together in Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa.
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