02 February 2010
Around 48 hours after the Haiti earthquake, the first of the UK’s 64-strong search and rescue team was out looking for survivors in Port-au-Prince’s collapsed streets.
They were quickly followed by others – operating in six teams – from across the UK’s Fire and Rescue Service.
With two specially trained dogs, Holly and Echo, and - despite the heat and restrictions on using their heavy lifting equipment - they rescued four survivors in ten days.
Among them was two-year-old Mia, pulled from the rubble by members of the Greater Manchester and Mid-Wales brigades before being reunited with her mother.
Unbelievable
Team leader Andy Roughley, 48, said: “Finding Mia alive and well was an unbelievable moment for us on our first day in the streets.
“The good thing was that we were able to make contact with her uncle – who spoke English – to find her mother.
“But, for all the media coverage of Mia, it would be wrong not to spare a thought for the families of the 500 or so people who died in the same building.”
Neil Woodmansey, Holly's handler, said: “Part of our training was done on a mock-up of a collapsed village but nothing can prepare you for devastation on this scale.
“Holly was brilliant. After each shift we would damp her down and she was ready to go again. She worked every day for 11 days.
“It was a massive honour to be part of the UK team in Haiti.”