Crime & Safety

Rescue Team Finds Bodies, Snow in Ofunato

No elevated radiation levels in their location.

Editor's Note: Dranesville Supervisor John Foust is sending along updates from the Fairfax County Urban Search and Rescue Team which has established a base of operations in the town of Sumita which is about 115 north of Sendai Japan. This has not been edited.

 VATF-1 continued with their operations* in the town of Ofunato, Japan (Iwate Prefecture).  The team continues to operate their Base of Operations in the town of Sumita at a local elementary school.  VATF-1 continued to operate with Los Angeles, CATF-2 and the U.K. Heavy Team in conducting a grid search of the mission area, with missions limited to daytime hours. 

Damage is still described as severe with large amounts of rubble similar to a hurricane.  The team has discovered deceased victims, however no live finds have been discovered at the present time. 

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The team continues to work with the local Osaka Fire Department in performing their search and rescue operations.
 
The current weather in Japan as of 7:00 P.M. EDT was 23 degrees F. with several inches of snow falling overnight.  Communication within Japan is still limited with our communications with the team limited to satellite phones and some email. 

The team is continuing to monitor the surrounding radiological and meteorological conditions in Japan and are reporting no increase in radiation levels at their location. 

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The team is operating some 115 miles north of Sendai.  The team members reported some continued aftershocks throughout the night, with no damage or issues and some members reported sleeping through them.  The team remains well rested and in good spirits.
 
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.  As always with this type of deployment, the mission and itinerary are subject to change at any time.  I will continue to provide periodic updates regarding the teams activities and mission.
 
Keith Johnson
 
Deputy Chief Keith H. Johnson
Fairfax County Fire & Rescue Department

*The Fairfax County Urban Search and Rescue Team, Virginia Task Force One (VATF-1) which has deployed  as part of  the   U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Office Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) response to Japan to assist in the response to the earthquake and Tsunami.


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