A group of professional earthquake relief workers from Taiwan arrived at quake-struck Sichuan Province in southwest China Friday evening.

The 22-member team and a sniffer dog landed at Shuangliu International Airport in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan, at 7:10 p.m. aboard a chartered plane by Taiwan-based Mandarin Airlines.

The team included experienced instructors and rescuers from Taiwan Red Cross organizations and the Taipei-based firefighting bureau, and Bailey -- a black labrador retriever that had participated in a rescue operation in Japan, said Lin Ping, an officer of the Taiwan Affairs Office of Sichuan Province.

The team is equipped with satellite and wireless devices, telecommunications and life-detection equipment, medical and logistic supplies, and food and drinking water for seven days.

The group has joined rescue operations in the Republic of El Salvador, Iran, Indonesia and other countries.

The rescuers are scheduled to leave for quake-ravaged areas in Sichuan on Saturday morning, but the destination will not be declared until Saturday.

(Xinhua News Agency May 16, 2008)