Members of a German, urban search and rescue team were the first responders to enter the suburb of Leogane, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on January 18, 2010. The team leader, Frank Schultes said his team is made up of volunteers, with expertise in search and rescue, mechanical engineering, emergency medical technicians, police and fire experts. Leogane, Port-au-Prince, Haiti. 18/01/2010.
Members of a German, urban search and rescue team were the first responders to enter the suburb of Leogane, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on January 18, 2010. The team leader, Frank Schultes said his team is made up of volunteers, with expertise in search and rescue, mechanical engineering, emergency medical technicians, police and fire experts.
The team was not funded by the German government, private sponsors defrayed most of the significant costs; but it was upon the team members to cover any additional expenses.
They have traveled all over the world, most recently to northern Pakistan in 2005, to aid in the last earthquake which devastated the country; December, 2004 they traveled to Banda Ache and provided desperately needed search and rescue teams.
The photographs in this reportage, are taken over a two day period. The photographs in the "camp" or Mais Gate Airport's eastern-most field, depict a United Nations' security briefing to all USAR team leaders. The following day's assigned areas of search and rescue were handed out. The German team was given Sector A, in Leogane; the hardest hit area from the earthquake. It was estimated that 80% of the infrastructure had collapsed.
The following morning, the German team prepared to leave the airport with a United Nations security contingent, consisting of seven armed troops, one lead U.N. jeep and a large transport truck. It took two hours to drive several kilometers to Leogane. The convoy stopped several times to check for survivors in the rubbled and destroyed buildings along the way to Sector A, but found no one.
Upon arriving in Sector A, the urban search and rescue team fanned out among the buildings, lead by their trained dog to locate any survivors. No one was found alive in the collapsed buildings, but many people in need of medical help came out to be checked by the emergency medical technicians and two Hungarian doctors who traveled with the team.
Many of the injuries consisted of lacerations, broken bones and burns. There were many patients who were critically injured, but were unable to get to a hospital to be treated.
The team stayed in Sector A for one hour and a half, until the United Nations security team leader ordered everyone back to the airport. The U.N. could not guarantee the safety of the team after dark, and was ordered to return for patrol duties.
The German USAR and two Hungarian doctors treated more than twenty patients before pulling out of Leogane.
The following day, the team went back to Sector A and rescued one individual who was trapped in a collapse building.
