Dramatic images as West Midlands fighters join Morocco quake rescue efforts
New images have been released showing the effort of rescue volunteers after several West Midlands firefighters joined the ISAR team.
The images show scenes of chaos and destruction as rescue volunteers, who are part of the UK International Search and Rescue Team (UK ISAR), clear away rubble looking for survivors.
The multi-national rescue effort comes as a devastating 6.8 magnitude quake hit Morocco, stretching from the High Atlas Mountains to the historic city of Marrakesh.
UK ISAR search teams jumped into action to help in the mammoth-sized rescue effort, with seven members of the West Midlands Fire Service among those who travelled to the ravaged country to lend aid.
The seven staff members joined 60 fire and rescue service personnel deployed as part of the UK ISAR effort, with their flight landing in the early hours of Monday morning.
Wayne Brown, WMFS's chief fire officer, said: "Our thoughts are with all in Morocco affected by this devastating earthquake, as well as with the responders who are dedicated to rescuing survivors.
"As always, we are extremely grateful to and proud of our UK ISAR members for answering the call, and for their families’ support. The team’s health and wellbeing is paramount, and we will give them all possible support during this deployment."
In the images, members of the UK fire and rescue service team can be seen kneeling, providing first aid to a victim of the massive quake.
WMFS is also hosting and staffing the 24/7 UK ISAR Incident Room for the deployment, which will provide a vital link between the team in Morocco, their families and fire and rescue services.
The death toll has been announced to have reached 2,900 with the number expected to rise as aftershocks continue to hit the nation.
