The first three months of 2011 were an acid test for the Australian Capital Territory's 16-year-old urban search and rescue capability.
In early January two USAR 2-trained ACT Fire and Rescue members, Mark Johansen and Peter Fitzgerald, were sent to Queensland's Lockyer Valley as part of the joint NSW/ACT response to that emergency.
A little more than a month later, nine Canberra search and rescue volunteers were sent to New Zealand in response to the earthquake that rocked Christchurch on February 22.
Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/heroes-to-the-rescue-20130222-2exc5.html#ixzz2LdsVi4Yc
Part of the aftermath of the Christchurch earthquake.
Then, on March 11, 2011, while rescuers were still on the ground in Christchurch, a magnitude 9 earthquake devastated the north-east of Japan, causing a tsunami that peaked at 40.5 metres in some areas.
Canberra's first Urban Search and Rescue course was conducted...
