Firefighters searching for survivors in a false earthquake in Osona
The EREC team is put to the test with a rescue exercise simulating an earthquake in northern Pakistan
BarcelonaThe ground shook, and the tremor spread through walls and ceilings. Houses were reduced to rubble, and some of their inhabitants were buried under mountains of sand and stones. The epicenter of the earthquake was in northern Pakistan, a rugged territory of steep peaks where the scars of warring militias are part of the landscape. The first team to reach one of the affected areas was a group of Turkish rescuers, sent to provide aid where the Pakistani authorities could not reach. They set up camp, and the initial reports were difficult: there were victims trapped in the rubble. International regulations, established by the United Nations, stipulate that the first rescuers to arrive at a location were responsible for directing the operation and coordinating the teams from other countries as they arrived. A group of Catalans arrived, made up of firefighters from both the Generalitat and Barcelona. "Hello, how can we help?" one of them asked. He speaks in Catalan despite being in Pakistan and addressing a group of Turks.Sorry“?” the Turk replies. The Catalan smiles and switches to English. He smiles because he's not facing a Turkish rescuer, but a firefighter from Barcelona, like himself, with whom he has shared many calls. They aren't in Pakistan either, although the freezing cold this afternoon feels like it belongs to the country at the Masia de Voltregà, in Osona. It's a drill, but everyone is taking it very seriously, to the point that they have to communicate in English, just as they always have when they've gone to help in Haiti, Morocco, Guatemala, Chile, or Greece.A nurse was left at airport customs – a supermarket parking lot – because she didn't have a necessary vaccine.
They're called EREC (Catalan Emergency Rescue Team), an NGO made up of firefighters, specialized paramedics, and canine handlers who are deployed to disaster zones. Today's drill is so realistic that there are live people hidden in a disused industrial building where the organizers—the supposed Turkish team—have set traps like walls, stones, and false bottoms where these survivors are hiding.
It's a drill, but there's a palpable sense of unease among the team members. There are ten firefighters, and at least thirteen victims have been identified. Tension rises as they have to decide—always the first step—which structures have collapsed and which ones they can safely enter. There's a palpable sense of unease when Kraken, a dog trained to detect trapped survivors, jumps over a wall, squeezes through a window, and starts barking: there's a person alive. The dog is rewarded for its good work with a treat it can gnaw on. "He'll do anything to get his hands on this," his handler remarks. Another dog confirms the victim's presence.
Doubts and tension
It's nighttime, and they need to illuminate the area with a spotlight. There's some hesitation when a firefighter picks up a drill and starts drilling into the wall through which they'll enter the building. Another firefighter is tasked with checking the structure to make sure it doesn't collapse. The organizers have set up supports and counterweights to detect walls that, if touched, will give way. There's a sense of unease when the wall doesn't quite give way completely, and they have to keep trying with the drill. Finally, two rescuers enter the house through a small opening, which they manage to crawl through. A few minutes later, they announce over the radio: good news and bad news: the good news is that the survivor is alive; the bad news is that she's carrying a dead baby. They gently remove the creature—a doll—and call a paramedic to attend to the victim and bring a stretcher.
Everything is so realistic that the supposed victims are actually medical personnel, because this way they can clearly explain their medical conditions and dictate how the rescuers should care for them. They administer oxygen, wrap him in warm clothing, and gently place him on the stretcher, which they carefully pull out through the opening. On the other side of the house, Kraken barks: there's another survivor. And finding him wasn't easy. This part of the building has structural damage and could collapse at any moment.
To identify the victim, Kraken has to climb a metal ladder. He's the only dog who manages to do it after several attempts, as his paws keep slipping on the holes. His barking opens the scene of another rescue.The dog's owner and handler explains that his children don't understand why the dog has to go where humans can't because it's too dangerous. They criticize him for sometimes exposing the dog to risky situations.
Today's drill is over, but they won't be spending the night in a hotel with hot water and food: they've set up camp next to ground zero—specifically on the local team's football field—and will sleep in tents on one of the coldest nights of the year. Tomorrow they'll have to rescue two more people. There might be surprises tonight: the organizers have staged an attack by an enemy militia.