FEMA Salutes Response Teams 

Release Date: October 12, 2005
Release Number: 1606-030

» More Information on Texas Hurricane Rita

AUSTIN, Texas -- Immediately after Hurricane Rita made landfall, the joint federal-state-local response effort focused on those areas suffering the most damage and having the greatest need for life-saving and life-sustaining activities, including the restoration of critical infrastructure.

Now, as the disaster response operation moves closer to the recovery phase, the State of Texas and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would like to salute the special teams that performed a multitude of missions. Completed missions include search and rescue, medical triage and treatment, logistical transport, and road clearing for emergency access.

The following serves as a sample of the special teams and their missions: 

INTERAGENCY INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAMS

Wildland firefighting agencies, consisting of firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Department of Interior, the Texas Forest Service, and local fire departments, committed more than 4,000 personnel to Hurricane Katrina and Rita response efforts in the Gulf Coast area.

Forty-one firefighting crews, including 14 “hot shot” chainsaw crews, have been clearing trees, debris and power lines on the ground in east Texas after Hurricane Rita. Hot shots are highly-trained firefighters who are experts at alleviating dangerous conditions associated with fire and other disasters. Each crew consists of 20 members that arrive at the incident with the ability to be self-sufficient for up to three days. In addition to ensuring safety by clearing roads and other passageways, the crews in Texas have staffed base camp operations and distribution points for food and water. 

NATIONAL DISASTER MEDICAL TEAMS

FEMA's Disaster Medical Assistance Teams (DMATs) treated some 7,500 patients after Hurricane Rita. The DMATs treated more than 100,000 patients of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita combined, the largest population served in the teams' history.

Eleven of FEMA's 55 DMATs, normally comprised of about 35 members, provided emergency medical care at Texas hospitals and shelters. Teams come equipped with their own medical supply cache and have the capability to set up a M.A.S.H.-style tent in the field, as they did in Beaumont and other Texas communities.

“This is incredibly rewarding work,” said Mona Khanna, M.D. M.P.H., Medical Officer for the Texas 4 DMAT Team, whose background is in internal medicine and public disaster health and was deployed to a hospital in Port Arthur that had lost power after Hurricane Rita. “We're not just helping patients, but we're helping regular staff and doctors who are often dealing with their own personal storm damage.”

NATIONAL VETERINARY RESPONSE TEAMS

A team of 17 veterinarians, pathologists and animal health technicians assisted local American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and county health department officials with examining more than 230 animals, including dogs, cats, horses and even nine iguanas. The animals were treated for dehydration, lacerations and decontamination from flood water. The team also surveyed veterinary clinics, kennels and equine stables and coordinated additional supplies to those facilities in need.

SEARCH AND RESCUE

Seventeen Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams, totaling 860 members, including Texas Task Force 1 (administered by the Texas Engineering Extension Service) were deployed throughout the state before Hurricane Rita. This makes the largest pre-deployment for a hurricane in FEMA's history.

Each task force is designed to ensure rapid response to support local rescue operations. The task force cache must be a mobile emergency room, constructions site, communications center, high-tech engineering firm and camp rolled into one.

After Rita struck, a team from California conducted reconnaissance missions in Beaumont and Port Arthur to assess the damage.

U.S. COAST GUARD

Coast Guard Strike Teams responded to oil and diesel fuel spills. A unified command was established with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the State of Texas and contractors to clean up and contain the spills. In addition, Coast Guard boats patrolled the waterways searching for debris and damaged structures, such as piers and pilings, and repaired and replaced navigational aids.

U.S PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE

The entire U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps was activated to respond to both Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The response became the largest medical response operation in USPHS history with more than 1,200 officers on the ground. USPHS emergency response teams have been working in locations throughout the Gulf Coast region, including Texas , since August. Ten federal medical stations were deployed, each with a 250-bed capacity and healthcare staff.

VOLUNTARY AGENCIES

More than 100 voluntary organizations, including the American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Mennonite Disaster Services, Southern Baptist Convention and United Methodist Churches, helped house and feed evacuees from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. After Hurricane Rita struck, the organizations housed a peak of 99,000 people in Texas shelters and served more than 550,000 meals.

FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, trains first responders, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003.

Last Modified: Wednesday, 12-Oct-2005 16:08:38