LA County rescue teams sent to Venezuela depend on a support team at home. 'We all work together'

After twin earthquakes hit Venezuela last month, 73 firefighters from Los Angeles County's Urban Search and Rescue Team were quickly dispatched to the disaster to help dig out and treat survivors of one of the country's worst disasters.

The work was dangerous, heartbreaking and exhausting.

But back in Pacoima, a little-known regional team working out of a two-story warehouse under the Whiteman Airport runway was providing another important service: supporting and informing US families about those firefighters.

As a search and rescue team at the scene of the disaster, the three-member Pacoima Deployment Support Team worked 24 hours a day during the rescue operation.

“We're in the same position as everybody else,” said team leader Greg Short. So, when the team is distributed, DST is used, we all work together.

The twin earthquakes struck Venezuela on June 24 and the next evening, a Los Angeles County team of 73 personnel, six canine teams and 80,000 pounds of equipment was en route to March Air Force Base in Riverside. They flew the next morning.

Crews were involved in rescuing a 47-year-old man who was taken out of the house eight days after the earthquake struckencouraging rescuers who up to that time were mainly uncovering human remains.

The team is part of the International Search And Rescue Advisory Group, which is a global organization of more than 90 countries.

At the center in Pacoima, a conference room was built both as a working area for day and night missions and as a way to bridge the gap between families at home and members of the department in the field.

Team member, Rebekah Drews, family support leader, handles requests for help from families.

In some cases, requests can be simple, like helping to fix a clogged toilet or a garage door that won't open. But sometimes Drews fills a more impactful role, like making sure flowers are delivered to a woman on her birthday when her firefighter husband is away in Venezuela.

Another important help is informing families about the status and progress of deployed workers.

When firefighters are deployed, the support team holds a conference call — every night at the same time — to update families on disaster operations and ensure search and rescue members are safe.

The calls usually open with a guest speaker and close with an evening prayer, led by a Los Angeles County Fire Department chaplain.

“I realized it's okay to be proud and sad at the same time,” said Angie Gudiel, vice president of the LA County Fire Wives, in a recent phone call. “It's okay to make your husband happy, while crying because you miss him.”

LAFD Chief Greg Short, right, team leader of the LA County Task Force-2 and Deployment Support Team (DST), and DST Family Lead firefighter/paramedics Rebekah Drews bid farewell to members of the Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team, which was assigned to assist in the rescue effort of family members in Loipa County after the devastating Zoom County, Venezuela. Angeles Fire Department Center in Pacoima on June 28, 2026. After telling the USAR team in USAR in Venezuela, he opens a meeting to bring team members and their families closer to greet each other. The DST team has been working 24 hours a day in Pacoima assisting members of their USAR team sent to Venezuela to aid in the rescue effort after the South American country's twin earthquakes. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

Firefighters with the Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team, assigned to assist in the rescue effort in Venezuela, greet their families on a zoom call in the evening at the County of Los Angeles Fire Department Pacoima Facility in Pacoima on June 28, 2026. After Army Chief Greg Short briefed the USAR team in Venezuela, he gathers to greet other family members. The DST team has been working 24 hours a day in Pacoima assisting members of their USAR team sent to Venezuela to aid in the rescue effort after the South American country's twin earthquakes. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

Drews said the conference calls are an opportunity to remind families that the support team is there for everyone, not just those on the field.

“A friendly reminder, if you need anything while your loved ones are deployed, we are here for you 24 hours a day,” Drews said during the call. So please let us know how we can support you while your families are away in Venezuela.

The team also works to ensure rescue workers have equipment, food, supplies and transportation while abroad, as well as overseeing the return trip home.

At the Pacoima store, a three-member support team shares a room where they work, sleep and eat together. The beds are folded up without the wardrobes in the room.

While working on a rescue mission in Venezuela, Short and other team members recently shot a man smoking burgers and fries in the kitchen downstairs in their conference room.

Megan Yanez looks over the Wall of Fame featuring members of the Urban Search and Rescue Team.

(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

Short, a 25-year veteran of the county Fire Department, has served on the search and rescue team for 23 years. His last deployment abroad was during the 2017 earthquake recovery work in Mexico City. Since then he has been leading the Deployment Support Team in Pacoima.

In short, it's a unique experience to be on both sides of a disaster response.

“My new role now gives me the impression that I know what they are going through and making sure that I give them the best support at home so that they can do well in this field,” said Short.

One of the rescuers in Venezuela told The Times in a terrible phone call that the rescue of the man found eight days after the earthquake was very tedious and was like playing Jenga, because any wrong move could cause the debris to crash the victim and the teams deep into the collapsed building.

“In our world, the risk is compared to the benefit,” army chief Emmanuel Sampang said outside a tent at the group's camp in Venezuela. “We're going to risk a lot to get a lot.”