A rescue worker sleeps after the night shift at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador July 2, 2016. In 2015, El Salvador registered a record 103 homicides per 100,000 habitants, making it one of the most dangerous countries in the world outside a war zone. But for many young people who have few chances to distance themselves from rivalries between so-called maras in their schools and neighbourhoods, a civil-society organisation called the Comandos de Salvamento, or Rescue Corps, has been a refuge. Jhonny Ramos, a volunteer coordinator, said that about 2,000 youths now respond to traffic accidents, natural disasters and violent crimes in a country where emergency services personnel have been overwhelmed by crises. The volunteers, who are trained in first-aid, gunshot wound care and evacuation techniques, often spend long shifts sleeping on small cots and responding to emergency calls. With 32 bases around the country, the organisation founded 56 years ago has also helped to take many youth off the country's crime-ridden streets and offering them opportunities to work as yellow-clad outreach workers. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescuers eat lunch at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 17, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescuer Brandon Martinez gears up for a practice session at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador July 2, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Joel Altamirano skates on a skateboard at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 10, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescuer Irving Altamirano embraces his mother, Claudia, as she visits him at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 17, 2016. Claudia is a former member of the Comandos de Salvamento. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuers Emmanuel Martinez (L), Brandon Martinez (C), and Joel Altamirano rest during a car accident rescue practice in San Salvador, El Salvador July 27, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuers Brandon Martinez (L) and Brayan Hernandez participate in a car accident rescue practice in San Salvador, El Salvador July 27, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Members of the rescue unit participate in a practice session at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador July 2, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuer Emmanuel Martinez stands at the scene of a car accident in San Salvador, El Salvador July 7, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Volunteer Carlos Rodas (L) prepares for his first jump with rescuer Josue Najarro as they participate in a vertical rescue practice in San Salvador, El Salvador July 13, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescuers prepare lunch at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 17, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Blood stains are seen after Comandos de Salvamento rescuers attended to a suspected gang member who was shot near the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 15, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescuers Joel Altamirano (L) and Cesar Munoz share a soda at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 10, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescue worker Josue Najarro and his niece look at a phone during the night shift at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador July 4, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuers try to disconnect a car battery to avoid risk of fire after a car accident in San Salvador, El Salvador July 17, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





A car crash scene is pictured in San Salvador, El Salvador July 7, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuers Maria Martinez (L) and Ana Chichilla attend to a wounded homeless man in San Salvador, El Salvador July 16, 2016. The man was attacked with a machete by suspected gang members. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescuers watch TV as they wait during the night shift at the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador July 17, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuer Alcides Altamirano speaks with a policeman outside a hospital where they delivered a suspected gang member after he was shot near the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 15, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuers wash blood off a stretcher after attending to a suspected gang member who was shot near the Comandos de Salvamento base in San Salvador, El Salvador August 15, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Members of Comandos de Salvamento and relatives of the deceased attend the funeral of 14-year-old volunteer Erick Beltran, who was killed by suspected gang members, in Quezaltepeque, El Salvador April 13, 2016. Beltran is the first volunteer to be killed on duty in 56 years of CDS. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Comandos de Salvamento rescuers Alcides Altamirano (L) and Irving Altamirano attend to a woman bitten by a dog in San Salvador, El Salvador August 15, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Rescuers Maria Martinez (L) and Renato Landaverde help a woman who was run over by a bus in San Salvador, El Salvador July 17, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





A photograph of 14-year-old Comandos de Salvamento volunteer Erick Beltran, who was killed by suspected gang members, is seen during his funeral in Quezaltepeque, El Salvador April 13, 2016. Beltran is the first volunteer to be killed on duty in 56 years of CDS. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Members of Comandos de Salvamento and relatives of the deceased participate in the funeral of 14-year-old volunteer Erick Beltran, who was killed by suspected gang members, in Quezaltepeque, El Salvador April 13, 2016. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)





Helmets hang in the room where 14-year-old volunteer Erick Beltran was killed at the Comandos de Salvamento base in Quezaltepeque, El Salvador June 5, 2016. Beltran was the first volunteer to be killed on duty in 56 years of CDS. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)