Welcome to the California Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 6 (CA-TF 6) website!

What is Urban Search and Rescue?
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Established the National Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) Response System in 1989 as a framework for structuring local emergency services personnel into integrated disaster response task forces.

Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) involves the location, rescue (extrication), and initial medical stabilization of victims trapped in confined spaces.

Structural collapse is most often the cause of victims being trapped, but victims may also be trapped in transportation accidents, mines and collapsed trenches.

Urban Search and Rescue is considered a "multi-hazard" discipline, as it may be needed for a variety of emergencies or disasters, including earthquakes, hurricanes, typhoons, storms and tornadoes, floods, dam failures, technological accidents, terrorist activities, and hazardous materials releases. The events may be slow in developing, as in the case of hurricanes, or sudden, as in the case of earthquakes.

If a disaster event warrants national US&R support, FEMA will deploy the three closest task forces within six hours of notification, and additional teams as necessary. The role of these task forces is to support state and local emergency responders’ efforts to locate victims and manage recovery operations.

Mission Statement

• The CA US&R System provides highly specialized personnel and resources, leveraged from the local level, for 24/7 response capability to the State and Federal Government.
• The primary role of the CA US&R System is to provide highly trained, motivated and experienced personnel, specialized tools, equipment and techniques for the purpose of rescuing persons in peril as a result of natural and manmade disasters, terrorist acts and acts of war, as well as to provide large scale incident management coordination and support, as applicable, in support of overall incident operations.

Participating Agencies