MIAMI – First responders from South Florida are headed to Texas to help with Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.
An urban search-and-rescue team from the Miami Department of Fire-Rescue left Sunday night for the Lone Star State.
"We got activation orders from FEMA to get on the road and to head to Texas," assistant chief Scott Dean said.
The team is comprised of a four-person crew specializing in hazardous materials situations and a 14-person crew specializing in floodwater rescues.
"The swiftwater teams will be actively doing search-and-rescue with boat operations in the water," Dean said.
An urban search-and-rescue team from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue was also deployed to assist with the rescue efforts in Texas.
The crews are part of the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Force.
"We'll be basically ready to assist in any type of rescue efforts," task force leader Andy Alvarez said.
Harvey made landfall in Texas as a powerful Category 3 storm and remains a tropical storm as it lingers over the state, bringing record flooding to the Houston area.