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International rescue teams descend on Ahmedabad: PTI

Disaster management teams from several countries, including Switzerland, Germany and the United Kingdom, have reached Ahmedabad, giving a fillip to the massive relief and rescue operations mounted in the state after Friday's devastating earthquake.

The Swiss team, equipped with sophisticated gadgetry, including cameras, sensors and mikes as also nine dogs trained to locate people trapped under debris, jumped into the thick of action soon after its arrival and managed to rescue a child and a young woman from the rubble of Mansi Tower in the Satellite Town area.

The 45-member team, led by Captain William and comprising army and technical experts, was expected to visit another 50 locations in the city for undertaking rescue work.

It is for the first time in India that such sophisticated methods of locating and rescuing trapped people have been adopted. Earlier, cranes and gas-cutters were being used to cut through and remove the debris of the collapsed buildings.

However, in many cases on Saturday, the heavy rubble slipped through while being lifted by a crane and fell on those being rescued, killing or injuring them.

The Swiss team, however, used sniffer dogs to find the exact locations of those trapped and then drilled small holes to rescue them.

Teams from Russia, the United States and Turkey are reported to be on their way to the city.

The 69-member UK team reached the worst-affected Bhuj this afternoon by road from Ahmedabad after flying in on a Royal Air Force Tristar aircraft.

The team is carrying five truckloads of rescue equipment, both sound and thermal imaging, for locating trapped survivors as well as steel and concrete-cutting equipment.

A two-member emergency assessment team, comprising humanitarian and disaster experts, of the UK Department of International Development also reached the city yesterday afternoon.

Apart from assessing the situation and finding out what additional assistance is required, they will co-ordinate with the government, other external agencies and NGOs in relief work.

The UK, through the DFID, has committed up to three million pounds, of which 500,000 pounds has already been released to the International Federation of Red Cross to assist them in providing immediate emergency relief.

An additional 200,000 pounds have been committed to support the efforts of the Russian Search and Rescue team and for the provision of humanitarian relief items.

The 27-member German team sent by the country's government through THW, a governmental disaster relief organisation, has also brought along electronic location devices, highly sophisticated cameras, and hydraulic earth-moving equipment.

The immediate deployment of these teams in the affected areas was crucial as the chances of finding survivors deteriorate rapidly after about 72 hours, a German embassy release in Delhi said, adding that Berlin had already pledged to give two million Deutschemarks (approx Rs 40 million) for quake relief.

A team from France is also expected tonight to join the rescue operations.

Meanwhile, the Indian Air Force and Army increased their tempo working round the clock to rush men and material to the quake-devastated areas of Gujarat, particularly Bhuj, and evacuating the critically injured to military hospitals in other cities.

An IAF spokesman said since the quake hit Gujarat on Friday, over 100 sorties had been carried out till Sunday morning and many more were planned as the magnitude of the problems unfolded and relief requirements grew.

''Think of anything and that is being airlifted from all parts of the country to Gujarat,'' he said.

More than 180 critically injured people were evacuated to military hospitals in Jamnagar and Pune.

The world's biggest helicopter, the MI-26, was deployed. One picked up 10,000 blankets from Chandigarh and another lifted 40,000 blankets from Amritsar for the people of Bhuj living outdoors.

At least 42 transport aircraft and helicopters are involved in the biggest ever relief operations that have been launched.

The 40-tonne capacity IL-76, called 'Gajraj', picked up additional heavy engineering load -- diesel generator sets, bulldozers, excavators and cranes -- besides mobile kitchens and kitchens from Bhatinda, Pune and Jodhpur.

Around 20 sorties by IL-76 were carried out through the day from different places to Bhuj to carry communication vehicles from Delhi and Jodhpur, additional material from Jaisalmer, field ambulances from Chandigarh, heavy engineering equipment from Baroda, excavators and medical supplies from Adampur.

Over 60 sorties have been carried out by the AN-32 transport aircraft, the workhorse of the IAF. The AN-32s have been carting civil and defence doctors, tentages, ITBP and CISF personnel, blankets, rugs and food packets.

Two sorties were carried out Sunday to pick more CISF personnel from Ahmedabad to Bhuj. Four sorties were carried to take tents and generators from Kanpur to Bhuj.

A plane load of food organised by the Agriculture ministry and another full AN-32 with water, tents and food left Delhi for Bhuj on Sunday.

The helicopter fleet of the South Western Air Command was pressed into service for casualty evacuation and dropping of food packets and blankets. Additional choppers were on stand-by in Delhi.

Six Avros were at Gandhinagar carrying out shuttles to Bhuj with relief material.

The Complete Coverage

EXTERNAL LINKS
The RD Killer Quake of Jan 26, 2001: Technical details
All about earthquakes in India and their impact
India Meteorological Department's earthquake reports
Disaster relief set-up in India
Major earthquakes across the world in recent times
A post-quake volunteer's unusual tryst with the departed
Earthquake News: Web site offering comprehensive news, information and features
Earthquake site map
USGS: Earthquake Hazards Program

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