<p> Saving lives is the highest priority of catastrophic disaster response. Fundamental to catastrophic earthquake planning efforts is the integration of life-saving federal urban search and rescue capabilities. Four U.S. West Coast State / FEMA joint catastrophic earthquake plans were analyzed and compared for the inclusion of critical federal urban search and rescue requirements. Significant gaps in specific critical search and rescue capabilities information were identified in the quantitative analysis. The planning gaps may decrease the deployment response time of life-saving resources into the incident area. Further analysis indicates a potential national shortfall in the determination of specific requirements in other State / FEMA joint plans, which could potentially delay lifesaving search and rescue activities. Federal urban search and rescue capabilities are ready to support survivors, but identifying time-critical search and rescue teams and equipment ready for rapid deployment into the incident area to save lives remains a challenge.</p><p>