{"id":2350,"date":"2026-06-27T04:02:51","date_gmt":"2026-06-27T04:02:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2350"},"modified":"2026-06-27T04:02:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-27T04:02:51","slug":"we-are-answering-the-call-south-florida-rescue-teams-deploy-to-aid-venezuela","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2350","title":{"rendered":"\u2018We are answering the call.\u2019 South Florida rescue teams deploy to aid Venezuela"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><!-- --><!-- --><!-- WPS-5038 -- removed the script from WPS and added the placeholder for trinity player --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- CONTENT --><!--[--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>When Capt. German Leal saw images of Caraballeda, Venezuela, after two catastrophic earthquakes earlier this week devastated streets he used to roam 15 years ago before moving to Florida, he was stunned.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2348\">Can DeSantis\u2019 AG Uthmeier get a Miami judge impeached? Here\u2019s what to know<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know those buildings, I know the stores, so it was pretty shocking,\u201d said Leal, a member of the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Urban Search and Rescue Florida team.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>He and over 80 South Florida firefighters, many of whom worked tirelessly during the Champlain Towers South collapse in June 2021, began deploying to Caracas on Friday night to assist in search and rescue operations.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cNow that I\u2019m going back in a situation like this, it\u2019s going to be very eye-opening and shocking,\u201d he said. \u201cWe will do what we do: Go out there and save people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Two earthquakes \u2014 magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, just 39 seconds apart \u2014 struck Venezuela\u2019s Caribbean coast around 6 p.m. Wednesday, causing catastrophic damage.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The death toll has been growing. As of midday Friday, it stood at over 900 with more than 3,000 injured, according to the Venezuelan government. At least 383 buildings and over 1,000 other structures had collapsed or were heavily affected, and officials were still assessing the damage.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The U.S. Department of State activated Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Urban Search and Rescue Florida Task Force 1 and Miami Fire Rescue\u2019s Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 2. Combined, they total over 80 seasoned rescue members from agencies across Miami-Dade and Broward.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>On Friday evening, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue\u2019s task force gathered at a facility just outside Homestead Air Reserve Base with equipment, beginning preparations for deployment.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Chief Raied \u201cRay\u201d Jadallah greeted nearly two dozen members of the group as they waited to check in. Shaking every hand and wishing each member safety and luck, the pair gave a rousing pep talk.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Among the group were Pete Marrero and his rescue K-9, 3-year-old Whelan. Levine Cava gave the golden-colored dog a vigorous pat on the head. The Venezuela deployment will be Whelan\u2019s first search and rescue mission since Marrero picked and trained with her at the University of Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2347\">MDSO deputies cleared in fatal car-dealership shooting. Man shot himself: memo<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>During a news conference, Levine Cava emphasized how important it was to show support for Venezuelan-Americans in Miami-Dade and their families abroad.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are answering the call from our neighbors in Venezuela,\u201d she said. \u201cThere&#8217;s still many of them waiting for word from people who are in the areas of the greatest danger, and these men and women are going in to really bring comfort and rescue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Jadallah said that while the task force\u2019s assignments are not yet set, it is highly likely firefighters will aid in operations in coastal communities.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou may have seen some of the videos with the buildings that have collapsed along the [coast],\u201d he said. \u201c It\u2019s extremely important for us to show that we are helping not just here, but we could extend that help to our brothers and sisters and families over in Venezuela.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>La Guaira, a coastal state neighboring Caracas, has been the most affected. It was declared a disaster zone and militarized on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Rescue teams, doctors, and humanitarian aid started arriving Thursday night and Friday.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Countries from around the world, including the U.S., Argentina, Chile, El Salvador and Colombia, pledged rescue teams and humanitarian aid.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>South Florida\u2019s task forces won\u2019t just be bringing manpower, but also equipment for breaching, lifting and supporting structures in collapsed zones.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur initial approach is to make sure that every single person we can save is going to be saved,\u201d said Obed Frometa, the Readiness Coordinator for Florida Task Force One.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2345\">Can DeSantis\u2019 AG Uthmeier get a Miami judge impeached? Here\u2019s what to know<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--]--><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Miami-Dade and Broward search and rescue teams mobilize with breaching equipment and K-9 units to support Caracas and coastal communities after twin quakes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2349,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-miami-dade-county"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>\u2018We are answering the call.\u2019 South Florida rescue teams deploy to aid Venezuela - Florida Moving Chronicle<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2350\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018We are answering the call.\u2019 South Florida rescue teams deploy to aid Venezuela - 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