Thursday 14 January
10.00hrs
Two firefighters from Avon Fire & Rescue Service are among a
team of volunteers heading to the Caribbean island of Haiti to help
with the relief effort, following a massive earthquake.
Station Manager Rob Davis and Crew Manager Paul Incledon are
both members of the charity Search and Rescue Assistance in
Disasters (SARAID).
Tuesday’s 7.0-magnitude quake is thought to be Haiti’s worst
earthquake in two centuries, with thousands of people feared dead
or seriously injured.
On call and ready to respond 365 days of the year, SARAID
volunteers are drawn from all walks of life and meet every month to
train for emergencies which could see them called to anywhere in
the world. In the past the group has been mobilised to the 2008
earthquake in Pakistan and 2007 flooding in Mexico.
Paul, who in his day job is a member of Avon Fire & Rescue
Service’s Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Team, was called upon to
help with the search and rescue effort in Indonesia last year.
Station Manager Rob Davis said: “SARAID’s role in Haiti will be
focused on searching for those missing or trapped in the rubble of
the collapsed buildings. We will be using sound location devices,
camera equipment and propping and shoring equipment to try and
locate and rescue casualties.”
SARAID is funded entirely through public donations – for more
information on the charity’s work visit www.saraid.co.uk
Ends