Puget Sound Firefighters Dispatched To Help With Hurricane Irma

PUYALLUP, WA - They just got back from helping out in hurricane-ravaged Houston, but Washington Task Force 1 is headed back out to help with as Hurricane Irma bears down on the U.S. Irma is expected to make a direct hit on Florida this weekend and continue to travel north toward Georgia and the Carolinas. A total of 80 firefighters from around Puget Sound left Friday night to Georgia in preparation for the response.

Washington Task Force 1 is a team of firefighters, law enforcement, and other civil servants that responds to natural disasters around the country. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) dispatches parts of the task force when needed.

The 80-person team headed to Georgia consists of experts in hazmat response, search-and-rescue, medical response, planning, logistics, and diving. The team is also taking five search-and-rescue dogs.

The team that responded to Hurricane Harvey in Texas specialized in swift water rescues due to the heavy flooding seen in the wake of that storm.

Follow Washington Task Force 1 on Twitter to see the Irma response

Winds from Irma will begin to pummel Florida on Saturday, but the storm isn't expected to make landfall until Sunday. Experts are predicting 3 million people between Miami and Atlanta will lose power in the storm. The storm has already killed at least 20 people across the Caribbean.

Image via Washington Task Force 1