TEXSAR Staging in Coastal Bend and Gulf Coast in Response to Hurricane Harvey

Austin, Texas –TEXSAR: Texas Search and Rescue has been requested by the City of Galveston Office of Emergency Management to send personnel and rescue boats to coastal areas in preparation for Hurricane Harvey. TEXSAR FAST (Flood and Swift Water Technician) and RBO (Rescue Boat Operator) assets are deploying to the area on Friday, August 25th. The Counties of Caldwell, Galveston, Harris, Hays and Montgomery have also made requests for TEXSAR services. Resources will be shifted as necessary as the storm and resource needs develop.

TEXSAR members are prepared to assist the Offices of Emergency Management in the affected areas as needed. They will be rolling out Friday morning with six rescue boats, an evacuation boat, a high-clearance vehicle, and over 50 rescue personnel. Depending on conditions, TEXSAR will stage at locations the requesting agencies and counties deem the assets are needed most. TEXSAR will be ready to respond when and where needed.

TEXSAR: Texas Search and Rescue is a volunteer first responder organization focused on Search and Rescue, incident response, and disaster response, with teams in Central Texas, the Gulf Coast, North Texas, West Texas, and the Coastal Bend. In addition to emergency response situations, TEXSAR serves as force multipliers for local public safety agencies, deploying rescue swimmers, search and rescue technicians, medical personnel, wildland and structural firefighters.

Whether TEXSAR responds to a mass casualty event caused by catastrophic floods like Memorial Day 2015, rescues a lost war hero suffering from Alzheimer’s, or finds a missing toddler, our all-volunteer members are trained and certified and stand ready to deploy on a moment’s notice.

TEXSAR deploys throughout the state of Texas at the request of local, state and federal agencies, working in support of those agencies to offer a wide variety of highly specialized resources that may not be otherwise available; there is never a charge for services to requesting agencies or individuals. TEXSAR relies on donations to support our organization.

To learn more about TEXSAR or to make a donation, go to www.TEXSAR.org. For media inquiries, please contact Paula DeLaCruz at paula.delacruz@texsar.org or 512-956-6727.