Mass. task force preps for Okla. search and rescue efforts

(MyFoxBoston.com) – A federal task force from Massachusetts is on its way to Oklahoma to help with search and rescue efforts.

The tornado, which has been classified by the National Weather Service as an EF-5, hit just as the team was holding its training in Beverly for new applicants.

The images from Moore, Okla. are heartbreaking and unbelievable. Heaps of debris now stand where homes, hospitals, and school buildings used to be. Some lost everything, including their lives.

In Mass., training exercises were held for 38 students who hope to one day be a part of the search and rescue teams.

The teams train for scenarios brought on by Mother Nature, situations similar those that occurred in Okla., which require intricate and delicate rescue strategies.

Chelsea Fire Chief Bobby Better is the rescue team manager for "Massachusetts Task Force One."

The task force is one of 28 nationwide. Chief Better and other members of his team have been deployed all over the country in search and rescue efforts, including some members who have already been sent to Okla.

Chief Better told FOX 25's Nicole Jacobs his crews carry with them all the necessary supplies, even the intangible ones.

The hands-on training only better prepares for the real thing. When duty calls, this task force will be ready, and right now, Oklahoma needs it.

Cox Media Group