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| Sepura radios will help rescue teams in locating people in flooded waters and debris after the tsunami havoc in Japan |
Sepura supplies digital communications in the aftermath of the earthquake and consequent tsunami which have brought devastation to the north-east of Japan on Friday 11th March. Sepura has delivered 50 hand-held radios and ancillary equipment to the UK International Search and Rescue Team (UK-ISAR) in support of the co-ordination of search and rescue activities. The radios will be used in Direct Mode (DMO) without TETRA infrastructure and do not require any special training to become operational.
The UK-ISAR team has taken 8 tonnes of specialist rescue equipment with them, including heavy lifting and cutting equipment to rescue people who are trapped in the debris. Its specialist search and rescue dog team will join the efforts to detect the scent of live casualties trapped under rubble. This is a highly specialised skill which requires constant training, but a search dog team can detect casualties that expensive high-tech electronic devices cannot. The UK-ISAR team joins the Japanese and other international search and rescue teams.
Jens Thostrup, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Sepura comments: "It is with great sadness we have received the news of the devastating earthquake in Japan and we would like to help in the way in which we know best. We are aware that in times of national catastrophes, the communications infrastructures are essential to any help and rescue activities, but often such infrastructures are particularly vulnerable. We have the priviledge to support UK-ISAR, which is renowned for outstanding endeavours in all major international rescue operations. The UK-ISAR team and our radios will reach Misawa Airport on Sunday 13th March."
The earthquake struck offshore at a depth of 32 km, some 400 km north-east of Tokyo, with subsequent powerful aftershocks. The tremor, measured at 8.9 on the Richter scale, hit at 14:46 local time (05:46 GMT). Seismologists say it is one of the largest earthquakes to hit Japan since records began.
