Rescuers leave U.S. for Iran
Published 9:00 pm Saturday, December 27, 2003
U.S. physicians and a rescue crew trained to search for survivors amid the wreckage of terrorist attacks and natural disasters headed to Iran on Saturday to help in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake.
The 73 members of Virginia Task Force One left late Saturday afternoon from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
Sixty doctors and other medical experts from the Boston area, known as the International Medical Surgical Response Team, departed from Westover Joint Air Reserve Base in Chicopee, Mass. They were scheduled to arrive in Iran today.
The 71-member California Task Force Two, comprised primarily of Los Angeles County firefighters, had been set to leave as well but was placed on 24-hour standby, said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Carlos Arispe.
National Security Council officials decided to delay the flight after Iranian officials said they did not need additional rescue assistance, said Los Angeles County fire Battalion Chief Terry DeJournett.
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