About Us - Massachusetts Task Force 1

Who we are

Massachusetts Task Force 1 (MA-TF1) is one of 28 FEMA Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) Task Forces in the United States, based in Beverly, Massachusetts.

Our team is made up of highly trained professionals from across New England, including firefighters, law enforcement officers, physicians, engineers, paramedics, and canine handlers.

Together, we provide specialized search and rescue capabilities as part of the National US&R System—responding to natural disasters, terrorist incidents, and large-scale emergencies wherever we are needed.

Our History

Massachusetts Task Force 1 was founded in 1990 and formally established as part of the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue system in the early 1990s.

Since then, MA-TF1 has deployed to some of the most significant disasters in the United States, including:

  • The World Trade Center response on September 11, 2001

  • Hurricane Katrina and other major hurricanes

  • The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster

  • Regional emergencies across New England

From its earliest days, the task force has been built on readiness, innovation, and a commitment to saving lives under the most challenging conditions.

Leadership & Team

Massachusetts Task Force 1 operates through a structured leadership system designed to support rapid deployment and complex incident response.

The task force includes more than 200 highly trained members drawn from across the six New England states, representing a wide range of disciplines including:

  • Technical search and rescue

  • Emergency medical care

  • Structural engineering

  • Hazardous materials response

  • Communications and logistics

MA-TF1 is sponsored by the City of Beverly and operates in coordination with FEMA and partner agencies at the federal, state, and local levels.

Mission & Values

Our Mission

To save lives and protect communities by providing highly skilled, rapidly deployable urban search and rescue capabilities in response to disasters and emergencies.

Our Values

Service

We are committed to serving communities in their most critical moments of need.

Readiness

We maintain constant preparedness to deploy quickly and operate effectively in any environment.

Expertise

Our members bring advanced training and specialized skills across multiple disciplines.

Teamwork

We operate as one team, integrating diverse capabilities to achieve a common mission.

Resilience

We adapt, endure, and perform under the most demanding and complex conditions.

What We Do

MA-TF1 provides a full spectrum of urban search and rescue capabilities, including:

  • Locating and extricating victims from collapsed structures

  • Advanced medical care in austere environments

  • Canine search operations

  • Structural assessment and hazard mitigation

  • Technical rescue (confined space, trench, rope, and heavy debris)