PC: Wisconsin Emergency Management
(WTAQ-WLUK) — Crews are expected to resume looking for flooding victims in Texas Monday after heavy rains temporarily paused the search and rescue operations over the weekend.
It marked the first time search efforts for the July 4 floods were stopped due to severe weather.
More than 130 people were killed in the flooding, with more than 160 still missing.
Members of Wisconsin’s Urban Search and Rescue Task Force and Swiftwater Team are helping in the search and recovery efforts in Texas.
The team is made of members from the Green Bay, Appleton, Neenah-Menasha, Menominee and Beaver Dam fire departments.
The team left nearly a week ago.
Doug Vrechek, the task force leader for Wisconsin Task Force One, says his team is working 12-hour shifts, searching debris for human remains.
Vrechek says he was told that there are more first responders down in Texas helping than there were for Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
He says his crew is thankful there is good cell service so they’re able to stay connected with family and friends and feel supported while taking on the grim task of finding those who died in the floods.
The deployment could be 14 days, but it may be shorter or longer depending on the needs in Texas.
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