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Neil Pickersgill from Greater Manchester says they hope to get to Japan in time to save lives
A team of British rescue specialists is due to leave for Japan later, to help in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami.
Fifty-nine search and rescue experts will travel with four medics and two sniffer dogs.Foreign Secretary William Hague said the UK had received a formal request for help from Japan.
Friday's 8.9-magnitude quake triggered a 10-metre tsunami wreaking destruction and killing unknown numbers of people.
There are no confirmed UK casualties so far, but the British embassy in Tokyo has a "long list" of people unaccounted for.
The UK has an International Search and Rescue (ISAR) team of volunteer firefighters and medical personnel permanently on stand-by.
'Still early days' The team is flying out from Manchester with up to 11 tonnes of specialist equipment.
Operations commander Pete Stevenson said he was hopeful of finding survivors.
"It's still early days after the disaster. Experience has shown that the first two to five days give the best chances of finding people alive. So it's crucial for us now to get there as soon as possible."
"The disaster in Japan is different to others we have been to," he said. "An 8.9-magnitude earthquake is massive by any standards."
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UK Search and Rescue Teams
- The teams carry specialist lifting, cutting and digging tools
- The British group is one of only 17 "heavy teams" in the world, who take their own equipment
- They take enough food and water to be self-sufficient for up to two weeks
- Team members were given just a few hours notice of deployment
- Byron the border collie from Hampshire is one of two sniffer dogs who will help find survivors
The team has lifting and cutting equipment which can remove concrete and rubble from collapsed buildings, as well as tools which can penetrate reinforced concrete and metal to help reach trapped victims.
Specialist listening devices and cameras will help locate casualties trapped in the wreckage.Members of the UK team have only recently returned from the earthquake in New Zealand, and they have previously deployed to Haiti and Indonesia.
The members come from fire brigades in Lancashire, Lincolnshire, Greater Manchester, West Sussex, Kent, West Midlands, Mid West Wales, Hertfordshire and Cheshire.
Search and rescue workers from 45 countries are said to be ready to help. The UN had said the first to arrive in Japan would be from the US, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea.
The latest earthquake hit the north-east of Japan at 1446 local time (0546 GMT) on Friday.
The International Red Cross said the extent of the destruction was not yet known, but medical supplies, blankets, food and water were the priorities for those in need.
Mr Hague said the UK Government has sent reinforcements to the British embassy in Tokyo.
UK embassy and consular staff across the country have been in touch with local authorities to try and make contact with British nationals.
On Saturday, the UK ambassador to Japan, David Warren, said: "Our main activity today is to make contact with British people.
"We have a long list of people not accounted for, drawn up from a large number of calls to our crisis centre in the UK, from families who are trying to make contact with family members or loved ones here in Japan.
"We are aiming to get through this list and confirm the safety of as many people as as we can."
The vast majority of the 17,000 British people living in Japan are in Tokyo or Osaka, said Mr Warren, but phone lines in some areas outside the major cities were still cut off.
'Building swinging'
The Foreign Office has advised against all non-essential travel to Tokyo and the north-east of the country.
The British rescue experts will join Japanese teams searching for survivors A British mother-of-three, Naomi Van Holbutt-Kirk, was collecting her children from school in Tokyo when the quake struck.
"The building was swinging like a giant pendulum," she said. She managed to get her children outside, before another tremor shook them.
"The next quake came, which was very frightening and can only be likened to the feeling of riding a wave on the pavement. Frightened mothers were screaming and crying."
A response team from Cornish-based aid organisation ShelterBox has arrived in Japan following Friday's earthquake.
The team has arrived in Tokyo and is to travel to the worst-hit coastal areas to asses what assistance is needed, the charity said.
The Foreign Office has updated its travel advice for Britons in Japan.
British nationals and friends and relatives of those in Japan should contact it in the UK on +44(0) 20 7008 0000.
Meanwhile, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have cancelled flights between London and Tokyo over the weekend.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12721827
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