I've been looking into possibly volunteering with the Texas Search and Rescue. I'm looking for someone who has worked with them before or knows someone who has?

I don't have any Search and rescue experience but I would like to help others in need when disaster strikes.

https://www.texsar.org

I'd be curious if there are any Ags here involved... after the help my family received during Harvey I've felt a pull to help out others in their time of need.

There are guys I used to work with at CSFD that are on Texas Task Force 1, but I believe you need to have some sort of significant experience for that team (USAR training, emergency medicine, HAZMAT, etc...).

Someone on our HOA Facebook page posted last night about www.preparingtexas.org. For our area, Course G-317 is the Community Emergency Response Team course ([url=https://www.preparingtexas.org/ViewCourse.aspx?courseid=92f853c7-0750-4343-8877-40327d28fd16]here)[/url]. These are classes in my area, I don't know if classes are available in other areas of the state.

So, regarding Texas Task Force 1...

As of a the beginning of December, Texas Task Force 1 or TX-TF1 is now officially Texas A&M Task Force 1 (still TX-TF1) because the Chancellor and his regent friends felt A&M wasn't getting enough credit.

TX-TF1 is a state entity that is run out of TEES/TEEX and is one of 28 FEMA Urban SAR teams around the country. Texas also has TX-TF2 based in Dallas that is also run by TEEX but is a bit more limited as they don't respond to Type-1 incidents.

Quote:

---

Texas A&M Task Force One has the capability to deploy as a Type-1, Type-2, Type-3, or Type-4 Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) task force, as well as a water rescue resources, and helicopter based rescue resources.

It is made up of responders from over 60 jurisdictions across Texas and has over 650 active members, all of whom must reside within a three-hour radius of College Station. Firefighters, paramedics, doctors, nurses, structural engineers, and canine handlers are among those making up the Task Force teams. Each month, one team is on stand-up, one team is on stand-by, and one team is on stand-down; the stand-up team must be ready 24 hours a day to be mobilized and deployed within four hours.

---

Most of the folks on it work for FD and PD's around the state but some of the specialists are drawn from outside agencies or government orgs. One real practical reason is time away from your office that is needed for deployments and training can be easier if you are essentially being used by another state agency.

As to the OP's question...

Previous work had me in contact with several SAR groups in Texas. I didn't deal with Texas SAR directly but understand they are well run.

One thing anyone can do is take the basic online FEMA courses that get you acquainted with basic incident response principles.* are required training for most any group that does disaster response and disaster recovery. There are now 100+ course you can take free but most of the time groups require only a few courses like ICS-100, ICS-400 and maybe a couple that related to the role on the team.
https://training.fema.gov/is/


TEEX has some classes online for free on various topics as well.



* As well as exempting you from any future stays in the FEMA internment camps when they open up in the future. It allows you to take the sticker off your mailbox.