Five From ACFD Go To Help After Hurricane Ida

DUBLIN, CA —Five members of the Alameda County Fire Department are part of Oakland Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) California Task Force 4, which left for Louisiana Monday to aid in the search and rescue effort after Hurricane Ida struck Sunday, according to the fire department.

The ACFD said the employees who are part of the mission are: firefighters Samuel Berry, Francis Fernandez and Jamal Miles, staff firefighter Aaron Finigan and engineer Shannon Dwyer.

Ida, a category 4 hurricane, hit Louisiana with 150 mph winds and, according to YaleClimateConnections.org, is tied for the fifth-strongest landfalling contiguous U.S. hurricane.

On Sunday, California Task Force 4 was activated at the request of the Federal Management Agency (FEMA) to enhance search and rescue capacity after the storm.

According to the Oakland Fire Department, California Task Force 4 includes personnel from a total of 14 regional agencies. From those agencies, 46 sworn and civilian members were called to the mission in the wake of Hurricane Ida.

The ACFD described Task Force 4's current mission as a Type 3 deployment, which, according to the National US&R Response System, means the force includes a multi-disciplined resource that consists of search and rescue response efforts for all hazards including: locating, accessing, medically stabilizing and extricating survivors from light through heavy frame construction damaged structures.

Specialized operational personnel that are part of the mission include: rescue, canine search, medical, hazardous materials (hazmat) and technical search and communications, according to the National US&R Response System.

A Type 3 task force means the multi-disciplined unit has the personnel to carry out 12-hour operations periods for up to 14 days.