VOLUNTEER rescue worker Barry Sessions has returned home after searching for survivors in earthquake stricken Algeria.
The oyster farmer from Lustleigh is a leader of a team of 11 who worked around the clock to try and find people trapped in the rubble.
The search and rescue team Rapid UK worked with 50 other rescue organisations in a bid to save lives.
Team members are trained experts in locating, tunnelling and extracting victims.
The priority was to locate any people still buried alive in the devastation.
The team used specialist listening equipment to locate survivors.
The rescuers were forced to end attempts to save the life of an 11-year-old girl, Sabrina.
Trapped under a collapsed building, the girl was heard calling for help after three days in the rubble.
Despite severe aftershocks, the team tunnelled through tons of concrete for 16 hours.
The team got within a few feet of the trapped girl but after repeated unsuccessful attempts to communicate, dangerous conditions meant rescuers were forced to withdraw.
Mr Sessions is a founding member of Rapid UK, which was set up in 1996.
He has been involved in rescue attempts in Jenin, Honduras, Columbia and Turkey.
The team of 10 men and two women returned to London on Monday.
International rescue teams have called off searches after it was decided that the chance of finding anyone alive were minimal.