Relief Efforts with Texas Search & Rescue (By First Responder Mr. Matthew Maloney, AP Biology Honors Anatomy and Physiology Instructor)

This past week TEXSAR began moving teams into position around Houston and Corpus Christi in anticipation of Hurricane Harvey. I was assigned to the Corpus Christi team, specifically as part of the team operating our Light Medium Tactical Vehicle (LMTV), a high clearance vehicle capable of driving through heavily flooded areas. Other members of the Corpus Christi team were assigned to one of our three swift water boats as boat crew or the boat's support team. 

 

While driving through the flood waters from one hotel to another, we noticed a man on one of the few remaining bits of dry land waving us down. When we made contact he explained he was a member of a tugboat crew that was in the gulf when the storm hit, and his boat had sunk. He and the rest of his crew, who were taking shelter a few feet away behind a low sloping wall, had spent the preceding night and the morning out in the storm. They were unable to make it to safety because the floodwaters were too deep. The LMTV team and I helped the men onto the back of our vehicle and transported them to the HEB staging area, where other TEXSAR members were able to provide them with food and towels. From there they were able to contact friends/family and be taken home. 

 

We then spent the rest of the day moving through neighborhoods in the area, knocking on doors and making sure there were no homeowners in need of evacuation. During our down time, we bagged perishable items found in the HEB and passed them out to area residents who stopped by. Word quickly spread around town that we were distributing food and water, and we had a steady stream of residents visiting our staging area. This was all made possible by HEB, who generously gave us permission to take and use what we needed to assist the community. 

 

After going out at night searching for victims, we set up our sleeping quarters in the produce section of HEB. Fun fact- the music played in HEBs is apparently hooked up to their emergency generators, and is unable to be turned off. So after a quick rest listening to soft rock from the 90s, we packed up and began heading to Houston.

 

The drive to Houston took the better part of the day. Most roads in were closed, and our 17 vehicle convoy had to reroute several times to find a way in.
 

The devastation in our part of Houston was total. Streets were flooded deep enough to completely cover pickup trucks. Cars and emergency vehicles were flooded and abandoned. People crowded onto the dry areas waiting to driven out of the flooded streets to the shelters. Many people who had lost everything were breaking down in tears. I witnessed more than one family who had put everything they could on inflatable mattresses and were walking it through the water to dry land. Working throughout the night, we eventually made our way back to our staging area. Knowing school was starting the next morning, I jumped on the last truck out of our staging area and arrived back early Monday. 

 

As of this writing, TEXSAR teams are still working throughout Houston, and have rescued well over 100 families from their flooded homes. TEXSAR members are all trained volunteers, and have taken the week away from their jobs and families to be in Houston. They are completely self-supplied, and pay for all of their own training, gear, and deployment expenses. Please continue to pray for them, other first responders, and the people of Houston.