Chief Dave McCoy, Assistant Chief Shayne Hamiliton, Lt. Randy Schneider, Firefighter Wesley Baxter and K-9 Solace received the call to help on the evening of July 8 and were en route to Texas less than 24 hours later.

By the afternoon of July 10, after driving 24 hours straight, they arrived in Kerrville and received their assignments and hit the ground searching within 10 minutes of their arrival. McCoy described the team’s first day searching as a hard day in the sun and heat.

The team spent its second day, July 11, continuing a land search with K-9 Solace

On their second and third days they were attached to the Kerrville fire and police departments to continue search and recovery operations along with other members from Texas law and fire departments and some from out of state.

Wooden crosses were erected near the Guadalupe River in Kerrville, Texas for the more than 130 dead and more than 100 still missing as a result of the July 4 flood.

The team tried to keep residents back home updated with how they were doing when they were able to with posts and photos on the department’s Facebook page. It was noted that the rescuers coming to help were greeted with love and support when they arrived.

“Still a lot of work to do but we cannot express the love and support from all the people of Texas for thanking us for being here for them and for the support of our beloved community back home and our hosts for giving us a place to stay while we are here. Thank you for the hospitality,” they said in a Facebook post.

McCoy noted that teams of 13 and 14 were each assigned to a side of the river to search.

“It was very difficult; it was steep and bushy and slick from the mud,” McCoy said.

Baxter also said that it was steep and the trees weren’t just knocked down, they were lying across each other making it difficult to search between them.

Rescuers from Ohio were shown Texas hospitality when they arrived in Kerrville, Texas to aid in search and recovery efforts from the July 4 flood with notes and treats from host families.

McCoy, who along with Hamilton, Schneider and Baxter assisted with the rescue efforts in Ashville, North Carolina after Hurricane Helene, said the mud in Texas was much worse and there was much more water in Texas.

“The depth that it got down here (Kerrville) was well into the 30-foot range.” McCoy said.

Also on the team’s third day, search efforts were paused, and search teams were ordered away from the Guadalupe River due to heavy rains that brought another wave of flooding to the area. This caused search teams to lose more than half a day of searching.

According to McCoy, he was told that the water upstream from their location rose seven to eight feet, making it too dangerous to have anybody near the water. It was at that point the team was switched to swift water standby, since they are all trained in swift water rescue/recovery.

On their final day McCoy and Hamilton along with K-9 Solace were assigned to boat ops/swift water with four members from the Kerrville Fire Department. McCoy and Hamilton were the handlers for K-9 Solace during the search and recovery efforts. They also worked with Ohio Task Force One and Missouri Task Force One.

A message is painted on the sidewalk in Kerrville, Texas, instructing rescuers with K9s where to search for missing flood victims.

Schneider noted that the team has previously worked indirectly with Ohio Task Force One when meeting up in the field on assignments and ending up working together. He also said it was nice to see some of the task force members and work with them and their K-9s.

The team made its way down the river to a group of islands, land that had been isolated by the water and unable to be accessed without a boat for searching.

“We probably searched a total of six or seven islands and then hung tape once we cleared them so they could see them from the mainland,” McCoy said. As they finished those up, according to McCoy it started to rain north of them, and they received orders that anybody in or around the water was to abort all water activities.

McCoy said at that point they had to get back in the raft and make a beeline down to the next bridge about three-eighths of a mile down the river.

“We did hit a scent on our way down to where there were some tight brushy areas which was tagged with a GPS locator, so rescuers could go back and search the area.”

Assistant Fire Chief Shayne Hamilton, Fire Chief Dave McCoy and K-9 Solace, Calcutta Volunteer Fire Department, work with members of the Kerrville Fire Department to conduct swift water searches on the Guadalupe River for missing victims of the July 4 floods in Kerrville, Texas.

K-9 Solace indicated there was a strong possibility of a victim.

McCoy noted that K-9 Solace also expressed interest in areas several times, which indicates there is reason for rescuers to go back in and do a search while they were on the raft. Baxter said that K-9 Solace indicated about six times in areas where a backhoe was needed to remove piles of trees and debris.

The area where K-9 Solace hit on while the team was out in the boat was a large tree with a pile of debris around it. McCoy noted as far as a rescue; no one would have been able to get to anyone in this location unless they were in a boat. The area since it was tag as a possible location of a victim will be searched by rescuers in a motorboat who will be able to get to it and go in and search.

Hamilton noted that he was confident on K-9’s Solace hit but said that it was unfortunate they were in an area not accessible by foot and that it happened during the time when the command center ordered everyone to evacuate the river due to the increasing water levels creating potential hazards for rescuers.

He also said the boat operator, a member of the Kerrville Fire Department, knows exactly where the location is and will be going back once it is safe.

Assistant Fire Chief Shayne Hamilton, Fire Chief Dave McCoy and K-9 Solace, Calcutta Volunteer Fire Department, work with members of the Kerrville Fire Department to conduct swift water searches on the Guadalupe River for missing victims of the July 4 floods in Kerrville, Texas.

When asked how it feels to know they could possibly bring closure to a family, Hamilton said, “It feels amazing. That’s where my heart is at and that’s what sent me to go there, and I just really hoped we could.”

Hamilton went on to say that he hopes that happens and hopes they find a body.

It’s a bittersweet moment where you hope she (K-9 Solace) doesn’t find somebody, but at the same time you do and are able to bring closure to a family, because I couldn’t imagine losing a loved one and not even knowing where their body is,” Hamiliton said.

McCoy also said that the need for cadaver dogs is so great in Texas right now, because there are so many rescuers there without dogs who are finding dead animals. He said a human cannot detect the difference in a scent between a dead animal and a human, but a dog can.

When asked about the realistic expectation of finding 100 missing people in a flooded river that is 230 miles long and feeds into the Gulf of Mexico, McCoy said they were going to be finding bodies over the next several months and years from now.

“There are some that will never be found, at least in my book,” McCoy said.

Baxter said there is so much buried deep in the mud. Baxter and McCoy both spoke on a box truck they saw that was on its side buried in the mud up to door windows.

“If a truck can be that deep, a person can be even deeper,” Baxter said.

Hamilton noted the odds are very high that they won’t find everyone missing, but he learned during his time in Texas that the people of Texas are strong-willed and they will never stop looking, and he has hopes that they do find every missing person.

When asked if they felt they made a difference down there, McCoy responded “oh heck yes.” Baxter agreed.

McCoy shared a text message he received from the commanding officer they worked under while in Kerrville on the team’s way back home, and he said he was very pleased and honored by what the message said.

“You guys did us a huge favor and made us confident in our searching,” Lt. Jeff Robitaille, Kerrville Police Department, said in a text to McCoy. “We appreciate you. If you ever need anything, reach out. We can’t thank you enough.”

“I appreciate that this is even possible for us to do this and go there,” Hamilton said. “I’m blessed to be able to help them in any way I could. Bless the people of Texas.”

The team members all noted they were very appreciative of the support of all the back home while they were away.

kgarabrandt@mojonews.com

Fire Chief Dave McCoy works with K-9 Solace in searching debris piles.