ORLANDO, Fla. – Six members of the Central Florida Urban Search & Rescue Task Force 4 were deployed to Texas to help the state following flash floods that left more than 80 people dead over 4th of July weekend, officials said.
According to a news release issued Monday by the Seminole County Fire Department, the search and rescue team includes two members from its department, two members from the Orange County Fire Department and two members from the Orlando Fire Department.
The six team members will be deployed in a Swift Water Team, which are comprised of water rescue specialists and boats, officials said.
The rescue teams are typically deployed for 10 to 14 days and are designed to be self-sufficient — they bring their own resources so that nothing is taxed from the geographic areas to which they are deployed, authorities said.
Founded in 2004, the search-and-rescue teams have been deployed to more than a dozen incidents in Florida, Louisiana and Texas, officials said.
In 2022, the team searched 2,500 structures and more than 200 boat vessels during its deployment to Lee County for Hurricane Ian, rescuing families and survivors along the way.
Texas requested two Swift Water Rescue Teams, according to the news release. One is coming from the US&R Task Force 4 and the other from Task Force 8, which consists of members from Ocala and Gainesville.
A total of 16 personnel were deployed, officials said.