Status Report: See What Your SSF Firefighters Are Doing To Help Hurricane Harvey Victims

MENLO PARK, CA — Firefighters and emergency rescuers from the Peninsula area are in the thick of a disaster zone left behind by Hurricane Harvey in Texas. Fire officials say 16 water rescue team members hail from not only the Menlo Park Fire Protection District, but from the Central San Mateo County, Palo Alto, San Jose, San Mateo and South San Francisco Fire Departments "...which helps to spread out the staffing impacts but also shows the benefit of a multi-agency team that comes together and identifies itself as members of California Task Force 3."

The team left for Texas Sunday night and drove to Texas to assist in search and rescue operations. On Friday, Menlo Park Fire Protection District Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman released the following update on what the team has been up to:

Members of California Task Force 3’s (CA-TF3) Water Rescue Team, one of twenty-eight Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Rescue Response Teams is one of the only Teams that have been deployed to the State of Texas as part of a nationwide response to Hurricane Harvey to search flooded areas in and around Houston authorized to use Drones.

The 16 Water Rescue Team members deployed come from not only the Menlo Park Fire District that sponsors the Task Force, but also from Central San Mateo County (Burlingame, Hillsborough and Millbrae), Palo Alto, San Jose, San Mateo and South San Francisco Fire Departments.

Responding from a staging area in Katy Texas early Thursday morning, the Bay Area’s Water Rescue Team was headed to the City of Wharton where the Colorado River had started to overbank around 3 am early Thursday morning and was reportedly flooding the City and the surrounding areas, when the call for assistance came in.

Enroute, a team member noticed a dog in trouble and struggling in three feet of water near the town of Hungerford, so the convoy of four trucks, two enclosed boat trailers and a suburban command vehicle quickly pulled over and rescued the mixed breed animal and then raced on to Wharton.

The Team was first tasked with conducting Search and Rescue Operations in the rural and muddy waters of the agricultural and farm lands that surround the City of Wharton. Captain Tony Eggimann quickly prepared one of three Drones brought by the Team used to scout out several miles of area from the air as the boat crews prepared the six boats while he determined clear routes of travel and the exact location of farms and buildings so they could expedite the search and not waste time, something the Veteran Hurricane Katrina Responder was more than familiar with.

Only a week ago he had been flying Drones over a forest fire at night in Yosemite National Park that was threatening the community of Wowona and the Giant Sequoias at the South Fork Fire, something that had never been done before.

Under clear skies and 1750 miles away from Yosemite, outside of Wharton, Texas, he again expertly, quickly and efficiently guided a DJI Mavic Pro Drone up to an altitude of 200 feet and flew a reconnaissance 360 degree ring around the area noting where the flooding started and ended, locating navigational landmarks, potential hazards and counted 30 structures located on several farms that would require contact by the boat crews from Task Force 3. He quickly downloaded several pictures and a video to his water proof I-pad and jumped into one of the awaiting boats.

The aerial “situational awareness” Captain Eggimann had gained helped the flotilla to quickly and directly navigate to specific and targeted farms and buildings. While no one was found, the Team placed a search marker on each of the buildings and wasted little time conducting the operation.

Captain Eggimann is a founding member and one of five certified Drone Pilots with the Menlo Park Fire Districts UAV/Drone Program. The Fire District is one of a small number of public safety agencies nationwide that can fly anywhere in the United States, day or night with FAA approval.

Fire Chief Schapelhouman said “Drones are a game changer for first responders, what Captain Eggimann did today is yet again another example of why every Fire and Rescue Agency in this Country, let alone all of the FEMA Rescue Teams in the Nation, need to be provided with these incredible tools. After conferring with CAL-OES and the FEMA Program Office, the Fire District was formally authorized and allowed us to use our Drones on this deployment.”

The CA-TF3 Water Rescue Team next loaded onto Texas National Guard High Water Military Vehicles and was transported along with other FEMA Water Rescue Teams from not only California but from around the Country into the City of Wharton.

The City was broken up into multiple search areas and the CA-TF3 Team was assigned several blocks consisting of roughly 50 homes. Water depths varied from zero to seven feet and with the Texas Guards help they navigated around most of the area without needing to use a boat.

In total, they made contact with roughly 25 – 30 residents, all of whom were extremely polite and grateful for their efforts, but respectfully declined the request to evacuate with the exception of an elderly couple who felt it best was best to leave given their health challenges. (See photo)

The Team returned to the Katy Texas around 10 p.m. Thursday evening in good spirits and ready to respond out again at first light.

— All photos courtesy of of Menlo Fire and CA-TF3