SEVEN highly-trained Hampshire firefighters have flown out to Turkey to help find survivors following Tuesday's devastating earthquake.

They will join an international relief operation that is hoping to locate hundreds of survivors over the next few days. The official death toll today reached 4,053, with more than 18,000 reported injured and a further 10,000 still missing, but team leader Phil Webb said the Hampshire crew believed they could still save lives.

The senior divisional officer at Redbridge station said: "Experience has shown that people can live for anything up to ten days under the rubble. When buildings collapse, there are often voids where people can survive. They will be in a pretty poor state when we get them out but we can save their lives - it depends on their condition."

The team, formed eight years ago, also includes Ray Cousins from Winchester, Pete Crook from St Mary's, Phil Crook from Eastleigh, Jim Stone from Fareham, Nigel Cooper from St Mary's and Jerry Leonard from Basingstoke.

The men regularly train together to deal with disaster scenarios, and several of them helped the people of Monserrat following the volcano eruption on the island last year.

SDO Webb said: "We have thermal imaging equipment which helps us locate body heat and hydraulic lifting equipment to help us get inside the collapsed buildings.

"The Turkish authorities don't have the kind of sophisticated equipment we use. The British fire service is renowned throughout the world for its expertise and we're happy to help where we can."

His wife, Val, said: "I don't think about the dangers. They've trained for this and they're ready to use their experience to help other people."

"If it was our own families in trouble I'm sure we would want help in the same way." Beverly Crook, wife of Peter, said: "As soon as he saw it on the television he felt he should be going out there. He chose this profession and volunteered to be in this team for this kind of situation.

"I hope they will only be gone for a week or ten days but it depends on how things go over there."

The authorities fear the number of dead will increase over the coming days as those still trapped urgently need medical treatment and are having to battle the intense daytime heat and dehydration.

Overnight, hundreds of thousands of homeless survivors camped in parks and other open public spaces.

Many either fear going home - several minor aftershocks have been reported - or they have no home to return to.

A second search-and-rescue team, dispatched from Britain last night with two sniffer dogs, one from Aldershot, was due to begin work today.

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