Texas Nationwide Guard continues flood reaction with Czech group becoming a member of effort by means of NewsFlicks

Kerrville, Texas — With about 100 other folks nonetheless lacking after devastating floods, the Texas Nationwide Guard and native officers main restoration efforts won further world give a boost to this week when a specialised detachment from the Czech Republic arrived in a position to assist. 

16 civilians and 4 cadaver canines from a Czech seek and rescue group landed Sunday in Texas on a U.S. army flight from Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

Nationwide Guard Bureau Leader Common Steve Nordhaus coordinated the group’s arrival and met the group leads in individual on Tuesday whilst he was once visiting Kerrville, Texas, for updates on reaction efforts.  

“Thank you for being right here, Texas and the Czech Republic have been companions proper from the start in 1993 and what simply an excellent partnership,” Nordhaus advised the group leads on the Kerrville-Kerr County Airport. 

The Texas and Nebraska Nationwide Guard have since 1993 shared an army dating with the Czech Republic as a part of the Nationwide Guard Bureau’s State Partnership Program that pairs states with international locations to coach in combination.  

There are over 100 partnerships with about 115 international locations around the globe, in line with the Nationwide Guard, and the only with the Czech Republic was once probably the most first after the initiative started in 1991.

The Czechs offering give a boost to within the wake of floods in Texas follows help the Texas Nationwide Guard gave remaining yr when the Czech Republic skilled critical flooding. 

When a flood hit Ostrava within the Czech Republic in September 2024, a Texas Air Nationwide Guard unit coaching in Europe diverted an MQ-9 Reaper drone to Ostrava to supply aerial tests for restoration efforts.

In Texas, about 230 participants of the Texas Nationwide Guard are these days supporting reaction efforts. In keeping with the Texas Nationwide Guard, participants of the guard rescued over 500 other folks within the preliminary 24 hours after the flooding started. About 360 of the ones have been evacuated the use of UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.

All over a Black Hawk flight over the Guadalupe River Tuesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott identified to Nordhaus flood-impacted spaces, explaining the place the water rose at a terrifying velocity — prompting pressing evacuations — and emphasizing how extensive the quest will stay for the kind of 100 other folks nonetheless unaccounted for.    

After the flight, each Abbott and Nordhaus spoke to participants of the Guard who’ve assisted in rescue and restoration efforts because the floods started on July 4. 

Some of the air rescues got here on July 4 when two Guard helicopters evacuated 130 kids from Camp Mystic, a summer season camp critically impacted by means of floods that ended in the deaths of a minimum of 27 campers and counselors.

The 130 rescued the day of the flood by means of the guard have been evacuated from Camp Mystic and brought to better flooring, in line with Captain Connor Garrison, who led probably the most plane and recounted the challenge to Nordhaus and Abbott.

“I admire you, I could not be prouder,” Abbott advised Garrison and different participants of the Guard.  

The Texas Nationwide Guard is receiving give a boost to from different states like Arkansas, Arizona and North Dakota, that are offering further group of workers or apparatus. For example, North Dakota has despatched down one in all its personal MQ-9 Reaper drones to assist survey particles scattered alongside the nonetheless swollen Guadalupe River.