Page 98 - Archived Back Issues

FROM THE MASTER’S DESK
Two UK International Search and Rescue Teams receive the Worshipful Company of Firefighters Award of 2011.
The “Worshipful Company of Firefighters Award” (WCFF) was set up three years ago to recognise and honour any individual firefighter, firefighting team, company or organisation that has displayed courage, initiative, high professional standards or humanitarian actions for the good of the community, the country or for the benefit of mankind.
This simple but sincere award, consisting of a Commendation and Citation certificate, is presented at our Annual St. Florian’s Dinner
In order to determine who the awards should go to, the WCFF seeks guidance from the Chief Fire Officer’s Association who make a suitable recommendation. This year, Chief Fire Officer Lee Howell, President of CFOA, made those recommendations.
It is always difficult to select between one or more organisations, so this year we presented two awards, both of which recognized the service to humanity given by the UK’s International Search and Rescue Teams.
UK-ISAR is a co-operative group of UK fire and rescue services and other organisations which respond primarily to overseas urban search and rescue emergencies on behalf of the UK government.
Readers will doubtless be aware of the two devastating natural disasters which occurred earlier this year, the Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan and the Earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. We are sure that none could even begin to imagine the conditions and circumstances which those rescuers found themselves in as they arrived to help.
Many, who served in the fire brigade many years ago, will remember that the level of equipment immediately available for use at non-fire incidents comprised little more than a fire appliance tool- kit, hacksaw and crow-bar. However, since those early days fire brigades, as they were known then, have developed into “Fire and Rescue” Services and widened their expertise to a level of competence that at one time we could only have ever dreamed of!
Both the UK ISAR Teams presented with the WCFF 2011 Award clearly represented their profession and country very well, but more
Master Firefighter, Peter Cowland presents the award to CFO Roy Wilsher.
importantly carried out humanitarian services in some very difficult and dangerous circumstances.
The first award went to UK the team which attended the emergency in Japan.
The earthquake struck at 1446 hours local time on Friday, 11th March 2011. The quake, together with the tsunami which followed, left a trail of devastation across a wide area of north-eastern Japan, in particular the towns of Ofunato and Kaimaishi where tens of thousands of people were reported to be missing.
Repeated quakes with a magnitude of 6.6 were experienced every 30 to 60 minutes, landslides occurred in several areas, roads, bridges and railways were destroyed over some 460 locations in the region. Despite an extensive search of both towns and their surrounding areas, Japanese rescuers had found no survivors. An additional hazard, relating to the stability of the Fukushima Nuclear plant some 120 km away, needed to be monitored and contended with.
The 63 strong UK-ISAR team sent to Japan comprised search and rescue personnel from across the UK, with two search and rescue dogs and some 11 tonnes of equipment.
Upon arrival they acted on a direct request from the Japanese authorities, spending three full days searching those particular towns. Using their specialist search equipment and rescue dogs, they worked quickly and tirelessly to search for any survivors.
Despite the very cold and harsh conditions the search for survivors in the utter devastation of the earthquake and tsunami continued. In doing this they provided much needed relief to Japan’s own exhausted disaster teams.
The team sent to Japan was lead by CFO Roy Wilsher, of the Hertfordshire Fire & Rescue Service, and so he received the award on behalf of all those that helped at that emergency.
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