LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Additional crews from Colorado Task Force 1 (CO-TF1) are headed to help search and recovery efforts in Texas where the devastating Hill Country floods have left more than 130 people dead and more than 160 people missing.
33 additional CO-TF1 members left Lakewood Monday morning and are expected to join the 48 other CO-TF1 members who have already responded to the Kerr County, Texas area.
“They will fly into San Antonio, and then make their way to where the other 48 CO-TF1 members have been conducting search operations since last Wednesday. This group includes one search canine- bringing the total number of canines deployed with the team to five,” said Colorado Task Force 1 on social media.
On Saturday, CO-TF1 said crews were working along the Guadalupe River between Center Point and Comfort, Texas and had “completed primary searches in a 7 1/2 mile area, going inch by inch and foot by foot along the banks of the river and in the water.”
According to ABC News, the search continued overnight in Kerr County, the hardest-hit area, where 106 deaths have been reported.
Denver7 spoke with CO-TF1’s Task Force Leader early last week as the team prepared to help with Texas recovery efforts.
"The Colorado Task Force 1 travels with an enormous amount of very specialized search equipment. We have probes, cameras, equipment to support our staff, so everything from MREs for food to tents, decontamination equipment for our search dogs and, you know, other medical equipment," said Steve Aseltine. "We travel with doctors, we travel with structural engineers and all the equipment to support their efforts. The first thing we do is we check in with the local authority and find out what's been done so far."
Aseltine told Denver7 the written order for the team came down just after 1 p.m. last Monday.
Forty-eight members of the team then packed up their bags and vehicle, as they prepared to make the long drive to the Texas Hill Country.
CO-TF1 members could be on their mission for two to three weeks.
Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what's right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.