VALDOSTA, Georgia, Oct. 10, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — Utah’s front line contribution to the hurricane relief efforts continues as Utah Task Force 1 stands poised and ready to enter Florida.
The group of 45 emergency responders was first sent east Sept. 28, assigned to assist Tennessee in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Based in West Jordan, Utah Task Force 1 is one of 28 federal Urban Search & Rescue response teams in the U.S. organized under the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The 45 include 22 members from the Unified Fire Authority, the state’s largest fire department, and 23 from seven other departments: Ogden, Park City, Provo, Salt Lake City, South Jordan, West Jordan and West Valley City.
By Wednesday night the group had been sent to Valdosta, Georgia, at the Georgia-Florida state line, as Hurricane Milton had invaded Florida.
“The storm has officially made landfall,” Utah Task Force 1 said of Milton online at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday. “Our team has safely arrived in Valdosta, Georgia, fully prepared and ready to deploy if needed by the State of Florida.”
Earlier, the Unified Fire Authority Tuesday night said the task force had been moved to Georgia and grown in numbers. “Our entire team, including K9s and equipment, has arrived safely! We’re expanding from 45 to 80 members, officially becoming a Type 1 team.
“With Hurricane Milton set to make landfall tomorrow night as a Category 3 storm, UT-TF1 will remain strategically positioned to assist Florida if needed. Stay safe, everyone!”
The West Valley City Fire Department shared a number of photos Tuesday online sent by their members of Utah Task Force 1 from the work in Helene’s wake in Tennessee::
“A couple of our firefighters have been deployed with Utah Task Force 1 to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and are giving us a firsthand look at the devastation they’ve witnessed,” the department said.
“They’ve been deployed with the task force for a week and a half and have been working in Erwin, Tennessee. They will now move to Florida to help with Hurricane Milton. We are grateful for their efforts and hope they continue to stay safe!”
