A South Coast fire chief is leading a team sent to Surfside, Florida to provide mental health support for the search and rescue teams dealing with the devastating building collapse that’s left dozens dead, and more than 80 still missing.
Oxnard Fire Chief Alexander Hamilton is considered to be a national leader in mental health services for the firefighting community. It’s his third deployment of this type of help firefighters around the country.
Two other specially trained Oxnard firefighters are on the trip, as well as peers from Boston, New York, and Phoenix.
It’s the third behavioral support team to be deployed to Surfside since the disaster. The team is expected to be there for a week. The International Association of Firefighters expected to send a fourth group to help first responders next week.
