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United States Sends Rescue, Engineering Teams to Haiti

By Merle D. Kellerhals Jr.

The United States has sent a search and rescue team from Fairfax County, Virginia, and an eight-person military engineering team to help the Haitian government with recovery efforts at a school that collapsed during classes in Petionville on November 7, U.S. officials said.

Firefighters, who are members of the Virginia Task Force 1, were flown in from Fairfax County by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to assist search-and-rescue efforts in the wreckage of College La Promesse Evangelique on the outskirts of Port-Au-Prince, the Haitian capital, USAID officials said November 7.

USAID also dispatched a disaster assistance response team (DART). "The team arrived on the scene within hours of the collapse," USAID said.

U.S. Ambassador Janet Sanderson presented condolences to the Haitian people November 7.

"I heard with great shock and sadness of the building collapse today at the 'La Promesse Evangelique' School, which has killed and injured many young students. I wish to extend my heartfelt condolences to the families who have lost their children today. One cannot imagine any greater blow and we mourn with you," the ambassador said in a prepared statement.

"We also extend our deepest sympathies to the students who have been injured, their families, and to all the children who have lost dear friends and classmates today. Our thoughts and prayers are with the children, the parents and the teachers of 'La Promesse Evangelique' School, as well as the Haitian people, as they face this tragedy," Sanderson said.

HIGH-RISK RESCUE TEAMS

The U.S. firefighters are members of the Fairfax County Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Team, which has participated in rescue missions worldwide. "The team will be composed of 38 personnel, four search and rescue [dogs] and 31,000 pounds [14,000 kilograms] of rescue equipment," the agency said in a prepared statement.

The USAR team will be accompanied by four additional USAID disaster experts who will join the DART already in country. The team arrived in Haiti on November 8.

"This is a tragic situation, especially since children are involved. We are working alongside the Haitian government to provide immediate assistance in the rescue effort," said USAID Administrator Henrietta Fore. "On behalf of the American people, I wish to convey our sympathy, thoughts and prayers to the families and loved ones of all the victims of this tragedy."

The Virginia search-and-rescue team joined French and Haitian firefighters at the scene. According to news reports based on government estimates, at least 92 people have been killed in the three-story school building collapse and another 150 people were injured.

In addition to firefighters, the U.S. military's Southern Command sent an eight-person military dive-and-engineering team. The team consists of six U.S. Navy divers, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hydrologist and a senior U.S. Air Force engineer.

The military team had been in Haiti since November 3 supporting efforts to deal with flooding in surrounding areas, but changed missions immediately to support the search-and-recovery effort at the school, Southern Command said.

Southern Command said the team will use all-purpose Humvees to help transport supplies, equipment and personnel from a makeshift camp at a local soccer field to the collapse site approximately 4.8 kilometers away.

In addition, the military team is providing site and safety assessments of the ongoing rescue-and-recovery efforts to the Haitian government.

On November 8, Southern Command donated $10,000 in medical supplies to Haitian hospitals caring for victims of the school collapse.

Source: U.S. Department of State