The local firefighter was part of international effort to train Ukrainian first responders.
SAN DIEGO — A firefighter with San Miguel Fire and Rescue just returned from Ukraine, where he led a mission to help train Ukrainian first responders.
Engineer Eric Hille shared video recorded over three weeks of the recovery team working in the war zone.
“We had nine firefighters from the United States, one from Germany and one from Australia,” Hille said.
The team of 11 firefighters crossed into Ukraine across the Polish border in April on the mission called, Project Joint Guardian.
“We could hear all day long the city under heavy shelling in the distance and we even had a couple that landed pretty close to us,” he said.
Their main effort: to train Ukrainian firefighters in rescue and recovery operations.
“When we got there, we had a large amount of civilian buildings that were destroyed from high-rise apartment complexes to single family homes. We saw whole towns that were completely wiped out,” Hille said.
The team spent Easter Sunday recovering bodies beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings.
“So, the first place we went to search was a house that took a direct hit from a mortar round,” he said.
A family was able to escape from the basement of the house but the father died, his remains charred beyond recognition.
“All we were able to recover on that incident was the watch that he never took off and his necklace. And that was enough to bring closure to the family that we were able to at least find some remains of him,” Hille said.
Beneath another building, the team found the body of a man, who according to neighbors, had screamed for help for two days.
“When we found his body, we ended up taking our helmets off with a moment of silence for him,” Hille recalled.
Hille said the mission was a success because his team was able to train more than 100 Ukrainian firefighters in medical skills needed to save lives.
“This whole mission was put together by firefighters to assist the firefighters. Our mission specifically deals with getting them the much needed, critical rescue equipment they need and medical supplies,” he said.
The team is preparing to return to Ukraine in July and August, and they’re raising money for their efforts. If you’d like to help out, go to fundthefirst.com under Project Joint Guardian.
WATCH: Video of Project Joint Guarding team working in Ukraine: