Haiti, January 12, 2010. A magnitude 7.0 earthquake on the Richter scale hit the country. Teams from different countries deployed there to mitigate the serious consequences.

Under the direction of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), Spain sent several intervention teams, including a UME team, which, for the first time, deployed outside the country. 37 troops were divided into two rescue teams, one medical team, one logistics team and one transmissions team.

In collaboration with firefighters from different Spanish regions and other countries (Brazil, China, Puerto Rico, etc.), they were able to recover 30 bodies from Hotel Christopher (Port-au-Prince), headquarters of the UN Mission for Haiti (MINUSTAH). One of them was the body of the Deputy Inspector of the Spanish National Police, Rosa Crespo.

UME also provided healthcare in a field hospital at the airport to triage injured patients, treat traumatic injuries and perform surgery.

The UME team was formed with personnel from the Headquarters and specialists from three of the five emergency response battalions. UME’s movements and interventions in the capital of Haiti were directed by the Joint Operations Center (JOC) located in the Headquarters in Torrejón de Ardoz.

During their stay in Haiti, the UME team received the visit of the Vice President of the Government, Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega, who was interested in learning more about the mission.

UME was activated on January 13 and completed its mission in Haiti on February 2, after 10 days of uninterrupted activity to mitigate as much as possible the suffering of the affected population.

The experience in this country highlighted the importance of having a specialized rescue team to work in an international environment with the aim of quickly integrating their efforts in the field.

Almost two years later and together with the Emergency and Immediate Response Unit of the Community of Madrid (ERICAM), UME obtained the United Nations Classification as an international Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team, the main tool available to the United Nations in major catastrophes.

During 36 uninterrupted hours, the UN classifiers evaluated more than 150 aspects related to the ability of the USAR UME team to deploy in the shortest time possible and operate according to standardized procedures integrated into an international operational structure.

For the United Nations, it ensures that countries send properly qualified USAR teams to emergencies. With this initiative, Spain reinforces its commitment to the international community and joins countries such as Germany, Australia, USA or Japan.

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