Ohioans making their way to Texas
Central Ohio has joined the Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, sending dozens of volunteers, rescue crews and utility workers into the flooding and devastation along the Texas coastline.
The Ohio Buckeye Region of the American Red Cross has sent 35 volunteers and three emergency response vehicles, spokeswoman Jordan Tetting said.
More than 4,000 volunteers and 200 vehicles from Red Cross chapters across the United States are expected to be in the area by Wednesday.
As of Sunday night, at least 6,000 hurricane victims were staying in 40 shelters managed by the nonprofit group, but the exact number is likely much higher and will continue to grow, Tetting said. Power outages and connectivity issues are making it difficult to update the figure.
Ohio Task Force 1, a 49-member team of specially trained first responders from across Ohio, worked overnight Sunday to rescue 10 people trapped by floodwaters in Katy, Texas, a suburb west of Houston. One of the rescues involved retrieving a person trapped by high water in a tree.
The crew, based near Dayton, departed early Friday for the Houston area, arriving with six fast-water rescue boats, six dog search teams, physicians and other specialists, task force spokesman Phil Sinewe said. Lt. Marcus Chapman of the Westerville Fire Division is a member of the task force, city officials said.
The crew has been providing updates on its Facebook page.
AEP Ohio sent 40 supervisors to Texas to help manage crews responding to areas with power outages, spokesman Scott Fuller said.
“We have not been asked to send additional personnel, but we are ready to assist if requested,” Fuller said.
More than 2,300 employees from outside of Texas have been deployed.
Many central Ohio churches and other faith-based organizations said they’re still determining how they can help. When search-and-rescue operations cease, they said they plan to offer assistance.