In late August, Hurricane Harvey roared ashore near Rockport, TX, the first Category 4 hurricane to make landfall in the United States since 2004. The storm brought wind gusts up to 132 mph and unprecedented rain. In the span of four days, many areas in Texas received more than 40 inches of rain, causing catastrophic flooding. According to the National Weather Service, the Cedar Bayou area outside of Houston received 51.88 inches of rain, a record for the heaviest rainfall in the continental United States.
But the devastation is far beyond the billions of dollars in property damage from flooding alone. Hurricane Harvey spawned multiple tornadoes, knocked out water treatment systems, sparked explosions at chemical plants, and has spawned a litany of health and environmental hazards. Further, as of press time, Hurricane Harvey has claimed the lives of more than 60 individuals, including Houston Police Sgt. Steve Perez, who drowned in floodwaters trying to get to work.
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Director Brock Long called Harvey the worst disaster in Texas history, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott estimated damage from Hurricane Harvey at $150 billion to $180 billion. President Donald Trump has requested that Congress approve nearly $8 billion in emergency spending to help Texas and Louisiana with recovery efforts.
Massive response
First responders from around the country descended on the hurricane-ravaged areas to assist in search and rescue efforts. Firefighters, police officers, U.S. military forces, including state and national guardsmen, used helicopters, boats, high-water vehicles—anything available—to rescue those trapped in the floodwaters.
Houston firefighters conducted a block-by-block search of tens of thousands of flooded homes, looking for anyone who might have been left behind—or the bodies of those who did not escape in time.
Marty Lancton, president of the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association, said Houston firefighters worked overtime in their rescue efforts, despite the fact that many of their own homes flooded. According to the Texas State Fire Marshal’s Office, initial assessments indicated that 9 fire stations and 14 apparatus were destroyed, and 115 firefighters’ homes were damaged or destroyed.
USAR assets
All 28 of the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) task forces were activated, sending hundreds of specialized personnel to the region.
The closest group—Texas Task Force 1 (TX-TF1)—deployed with USAR, water rescue and helicopter resources. The team conducted thousands of evacuations as well as confirmations of shelter-in-place residents.
Missouri Task Force 1 (MO-TF 1) arrived in the Houston area and was assigned to train approximately 50 Houston Fire Department personnel on the use of GPS units for wide-area search using FEMA USAR Response System procedures. GPS units are used to track where search teams go and mark the location of certain issues.
Ohio Task Force 1 (OH-TF1) was dispatched to Katy, TX, focusing on water rescue missions, including the evacuation of more than 80 seniors trapped in a nursing home.
Task forces from Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia and Washington also aided in the search and rescue efforts in the region.
Rescues continue
As of press time, first responders continued to engage in search and rescue activities. Most task forces were being released from the area to return home or prepare for the next deployment.
Sidebar: Hurricane Harvey by the Numbers
27 trillion: Gallons of rain Hurricane Harvey dumped on Texas and Louisiana in 6 days (Source: CNN)
51.88 inches: Rain recorded in the Cedar Bayou area of Texas (Source: National Weather Service)
185,149: Homes estimated to be damaged or destroyed (Source: Texas Division of Emergency Management)
72,000: Number of people rescued (Source: CNN)
60+: Confirmed dead
42,399: People in shelters (Source: Texas Gov. Abbot)
450,000: People expected to register for assistance with the FEMA (Source: FEMA)
Sidebar: FEMA Task Force Cache
Each USAR team is equipped with a standardized FEMA cache that is designed to allow a task force to be self-sufficient for the first 72 hours of a deployment, and operate with assistance for up to 14 days.
Logistics specialists handle the more than 16,400 pieces of equipment needed to support the task force. To ensure rapid and effective response, the task force equipment cache must be a construction site, communications center, high-tech engineering firm, mobile emergency room, and camp rolled into one.
Standardized FEMA cache includes the following supplies:
Medical: Medical supplies include various medicines, IV fluids, blankets, suture sets, airways, tracheal tubes, defibrillators, burn treatment supplies, bone saws and scalpels.
Rescue: Common cache supplies include concrete saws, jackhammers, drills, lumber and rope. This equipment is used to safely reach trapped survivors, and to carefully and effectively remove them from the rubble.
Communications: The communications section allows rescuers to stay in contact in case of a find or an evacuation. Generators, lights, radios, cellular phones, laptop computers and other electronics equipment are used.
Technical Support: The technical support component is comprised of more than 500 items, including snake-like cameras and fiber-optic scopes that can be used to locate survivors trapped in rubble, and sensitive listening devices that can detect even the slightest human sound to locate survivors who are still alive.
Logistics: The logistics section cares for the needs of the rescuers as they work in 12-hour shifts around the clock. Supplies include sleeping bags, cots, food and water, as well as cold weather gear.
