MCKINNEY, TX. (March 22, 2022) – Minuteman Disaster Response (MDR), a non-profit first responder support team comprised of well-trained volunteers, activated its Operations Center and deployed two Rapid Response Teams to Jacksboro, TX Monday afternoon.
Minuteman Disaster Response is a 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit based in McKinney, Texas that is driven by over 230 trained volunteers who serve communities after disasters. Volunteers are trained in search and rescue from the ground, air and water as well as emergency communications, flooded home muck-outs, chainsaw and heavy equipment operations. To preserve critical community resources in the aftermath of natural disasters, the organization deploys as a fully self-contained and self-sufficient task force that is capable of providing for itself while meeting the needs of the communities it serves.
At 3pm Monday the organization activated its Operations Center and staffed it with 3 volunteers that monitored the radar, social media feeds and local news watching for the potential of severe weather. At 3:30p the team deployed 2 Rapid Response Teams and immediately began to head towards Jack County where a radar indicated debris signature had developed. Upon arrival, the team met with the Jack County Emergency Manager and began to deploy two infrared equipped sUAS (drones) to acquire an aerial view of the damage. This mapping continued into the night and is ongoing today.
Since its founding in 2011, Minuteman Disaster Response has deployed to 26 major disasters in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Kentucky. In 2021, the organization deployed 141 volunteers, who served 7,041 hours, in support of communities impacted by natural disasters – resulting in a disaster recovery cost-savings to these areas of $198,693.
To find out more about Minuteman Disaster Response and how the organization supports communities impacted by natural disasters, visit https://www.minutemanresponse.org/ and check them out on Twitter (@MinutemanTeam), Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.