LA-Based Search And Rescue Team To Head To Japan
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Officials say an elite Los Angeles County Fire Department Urban Search and Rescue team has been activated and could be in Japan by Sunday.
Capt. Ed Lozano says 72 team members, six dogs and 74,000 tons of equipment and supplies are getting ready to head for the quake-devastated area.
Lozano says the task force includes firefighters, emergency room doctors, engineers and hazardous materials technicians. There are also members specially trained in underwater rescue.
Lozano says some of the rescue workers have just returned from New Zealand, where they were sent after last month's Christchurch quake. They too will be on the flight to Japan.
Lozano says logistics for the flight are still being worked out.
The team was requested by the U.S. Agency for International Development.
