Indiana Task Force 1 assisting with recovery efforts in Randolph County
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — First responders with Indiana Task Force 1 arrived in Randolph County early Friday to assist with search and rescue and recovery efforts following Thursday’s severe weather.
A Facebook video from 2:45 a.m. shows emergency vehicles, trucks, and trailers loaded with personnel, equipment, and supplies pulling out of an INTF-1 facility.
INTF did not say exactly where the team was headed or how long it would be deployed.
Indiana Task Force 1 is one of 28 highly trained Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency-sponsored urban search and rescue teams in the U.S.
The task force is made up of various types of specialized personnel, including search and rescue specialists and boat operators, canine search teams, and medical and communications experts. The personnel assigned to a disaster depends on the circumstances; a boat operator might not be needed for rescue operations that are not water-related.
INTF-1 can deploy almost anywhere in the United States. In recent years, its members have helped with search and rescue efforts after flooding in southeastern Kentucky, hurricanes in Florida, and the 2023 Maui wildfires.
At home, Indiana Task Force 1 has been involved in search and rescue efforts after weather events including tornadoes in Henryville, Lafayette, Indianapolis, and Evansville.
Click here to learn more about Indiana Task Force 1.