They respond to natural and man-made disasters, and now, the group known as Maryland Task Force One is in Henderson County in western Kentucky, supporting local emergency response teams after severe storms and flooding this week.
Maryland Task Force One leader Doug Hinkle told WTOP that the team carried out water rescues on Tuesday.
“We completed quite a bit yesterday, both with a boat and what we call ‘shallow water walking,'” Hinkle said.
On Wednesday, he said the team will do “windshield surveys and assessments.” During those tasks, members drive through storm-affected areas and check on residents who may need to be evacuated, area conditions and overall storm damage.
Hinkle explained the area where the team as been working is across the Ohio River from Evansville, Indiana. The concern is the effect that the cresting waters could have on the region.
“They’re expecting the crest to come in the next day or two,” Hinkle said.
Persistent storms brought in heavy rain that flooded rivers and killed at least 23 people, including 10 in Tennessee, The Associated Press reported.
As for conditions, “I can say, we were moving from one area to another and we adjusted our route of travel because we came across flooded roads,” Hinkle said.
Maryland Task Force One operates as a Federal Emergency Management Agency Urban Search and Rescue team. The teams can include members of fire and rescue services as well as police departments.
Hinkle said in this current deployment, there are team members from Montgomery, Howard and Frederick counties, as well as the District.
Hinkle said the team will be working in Kentucky for as long as they’re needed.
“We stand shoulder to shoulder with Kentucky responders to help the state recover,” Hinkle said.
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