County working to build up rescue force

Hurricane Harvey response underscored need for better planning and coordination

With emergency responders across the Houston area overwhelmed by the scope of Hurricane Harvey’s devastation, the 911 system overburdened and outside help stymied by high water, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett went on television on Aug. 27 to make a public plea.

Wherever you are, if you have a boat, Emmett said, get out in the neighborhood and help evacuate people trapped by floodwaters.

Now, local officials are working up a plan that would better coordinate response — ahead of time — among volunteers during disasters such as Harvey.

Emmett and other county officials want to create a database of residents across the county who own boats, vehicles that can travel in high water, and other rescue equipment to efficiently target volunteer response, which studies show are critical lifelines during disasters.

“We have to get all that coordinated,” he said.

There is no timeline yet, but discussions to create such a force are ongoing, Emmett said.

“The fleet could not have been big enough to accommodate the need during Harvey, that’s why volunteers were so critical,” said Jason Spencer, spokesman for Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. “We’re looking at how do we coordinate that in the future.”

Harvey showed the five boats and three high-water rescue vehicles the sheriff ’s office operates were insufficient during Harvey, he said.

Millions to renew fleet

The push for a more organized volunteer force is part of a greater effort to address limitations in the region’s ability to handle a storm on Harvey’s scale.

In the largest storm the Houston area had ever seen, Harvey dropped more than 51 inches of rain across the county, flooded more than 100,000 homes and structures and killed dozens of people.

A Houston Chronicle investigation in October found that inadequate training, aging evacuation boats and a lack of resources such as high-water rescue vehicles hamstrung the city’s response, despite years of warnings. Voters passed a city bond measure on Nov. 7 that will give the department $10.8 million a year for five years to renew its fleet.

Spencer said the sheriff ’s office is still conducting an afteraction report.

“We’re evaluating our marine fleet,” Spencer said.

While volunteer response was “successful through the county,” a more organized force could help alleviate at least two problems, Emmett said.

In one case, volunteers with flat-bottom boats showed up to help flooded Kingwood residents, but more powerful boats with motors were needed to handle the currents.

In another case, volunteers from the Cajun Navy — a similar volunteer disaster response team based in Louisiana — had difficulties in finding specific addresses of homes that had residents who needed to be rescued during the storm.

“Clearly there were some issues,” Emmett said.

A database would allow emergency responders to summon volunteers with the proper equipment to areas most in need faster, even if the storm isn’t as severe or widespread as Harvey.

Volunteer team in the works

An August 2017 study published in “Environment and Urbanization” surveyed volunteer response to disasters worldwide, including hurricanes, earthquakes and even 9/11. The study, which was unrelated to Harvey, showed that volunteers play a widespread and significant role after disasters.

The study found that while “disaster management agencies have generally been reluctant to include emergent groups and spontaneous volunteers in their counter-disaster plans,” that “disaster response plans and procedures need to be adapted, not only to acknowledge that voluntary action by citizens will inevitably take place, but also to integrate those citizens into the response effort.”

In September, Precinct 3 Constable Sherman Eagleton wrote a letter to Harris County Commissioners Court, seeking the authority to create a volunteer response force in his precinct.

The “Volunteer Disaster Response Team” would provide privately owned boats and vehicles to help search and rescue operations, providing that volunteers have a boater education certification from the state and pass a background check, among other qualifications.

“I have personally experienced the lack of resources available to the rescue and recovery operations throughout Harris County,” Eagleton wrote in a letter to Commissioners Court.

Jorey Herrscher, chief inspector for Eagleton, said precinct officials are still working up the plan, which they hope to implement next year.

“Really we couldn’t have done what we did without the volunteers, and we’re grateful for everything everybody did,” Herrscher said. “But there really wasn’t a great way to organize the local volunteers that popped up and wanted to help.”