More than 80 Los Angeles County fire rescuers are preparing to leave today to support search operations in the region devastated by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake on the Turkey-Syria border on Monday.
The county Search and Rescue Unit “brings together the best of the best, and will be key to saving lives and rescuing people still trapped under the rubble,” said County Supervisor Kathryn Barger.
At least 4,000 people had died, according to a count at the close of this edition of La Opinión. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan reported that at least 11,000 people were injured and some 7,000 people had been rescued as of last night.
Syria’s Department of Health reported that more than 550 people were killed, but it was a conservative count for the country ravaged by both earthquakes and aftershocks and war.
The Syrian government has called on the United Nations and all member states to help with rescue efforts, medical care, health, shelter and urgent food aid.
The team that left last night on a humanitarian mission from Los Angeles, the second responding firefighters from the United States, includes 78 specialists in search and extraction of survivors, six canine teams, and a group of structural engineers, reported the interim chief of county firefighters, Anthony Marrone.
The first team of American firefighters had left the state of Virginia in the afternoon, according to the White House.
The unit will arrive to provide assistance immediately, the acting chief said. When they arrive in Turkey, the Los Angeles firefighters will join the Disaster Assistance Response Team or DART, which will coordinate with Turkish government authorities to assess the damage and determine actions.
The Los Angeles team will report to the United States Agency for International Development, also known as USAID.
The canine teams participating in the mission are trained to identify when a victim under the rubble is still alive or has already died.
The Los Angeles fire unit has experience in similar situations. He participated in 2017 in Mexico City after an earthquake hit the Mexican capital.
The Los Angeles firefighters went with the preliminary idea of working in rescues for just over two weeks, but it will depend on the conditions they find on the ground.
The civil assistance organization, Oxfam, reported that the urgent needs will continue in the long term for the population that hit the initial earthquake of 7.8 degrees, a 7 aftershock, and dozens of movements of around 6 degrees on the Richter scale.
“We know that all the neighborhoods affected by this terrible earthquake, and the survivors of it, will need a lot of help and support, not only in the immediate short term, but in the days, weeks and months ahead,” Oxfam warned.
The Turkish consulate in Los Angeles, at 6300 Wilshire Boulevard, asked that people who wish to donate to help those affected can support with emergency aid items, such as blankets, tents, sleeping bags, heaters, pocket, winter clothing, and over-the-counter cold, flu, and pain medications.
They also need hygiene items, baby items, diapers, among others, and formula milk.
The diplomatic headquarters requested that the donations be delivered in transparent plastic bags and each one with a list of donated items.
The White House reported in a statement that President Joe Biden expressed “the willingness of the United States to provide all necessary assistance” to Turkey, a member of the North Atlantic Organization (NATO).
“The president authorized an immediate US response in addition to US personnel currently on the ground,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
“We are in the process of deploying additional teams to support Turkey’s search and rescue efforts and address the needs of those injured and displaced by the earthquakes,” he added.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken declared that “we are determined to do everything we can to help those affected by these earthquakes in the days, weeks and months ahead.”
If you want to support the victims in Los Angeles, in addition to donating at the consulates, you can contact the Association of Syrian American Women of Southern California in Canoga Park.