Local fire authorities head to Puerto Rico to assist with cleanup, rescue efforts
As the Category 3 Hurricane Fiona continues its path through the Atlantic Ocean, hitting Turks and Caicos on Tuesday, Puerto Rico remains without power and running water, and with a multitude of rescue and cleanup operations underway.
Riverside Fire Department and Orange County Fire Authority have heeded the call for help, sending crews to Puerto Rico to assist with those efforts.
When Hurricane Fiona hit the island it unleashed nearly three feet of water onto some parts of the island, creating swamp-like conditions in cities and neighborhoods.
"This has been a much more significant rain event," said OCFA Battalion Chief Craig Covey. "Almost three feet of rain and still showers coming too."
Covey is leading an Incident Support Team in Puerto Rico. They are one of several Southern California response teams sent to the Caribbean by President Biden and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, supporting rescue teams with equipment.
"As soon as they allowed it we were on some of the first flights in," he said. "It's awesome to be here, I'm proud to represent the country."
"Even though it is quite a task to get it there, it's what they do, and it's what they're very good at," said RFD Captain Brian Guzzetta.
Their teams have assisted by bringing a FEMA Incident Report Team cache of equipment to assist, as well as helping with rescue logistics.
"Whether it's air travel, boat travel, whatever the means necessary, they have all these plans in place," said Guzzetta. "Getting all this equipment together, having it already loaded, already tested."
As efforts continue, Puerto Rico's president on Tuesday disclosed that they were able to restore power to 300k of the 1.47 million customers on the island, as well as to several hospitals.
According to CBS meteorologists, Hurricane Fiona is gaining in strength as it closes in on Bermuda as it continues on a northbound path up the Atlantic Ocean, though it is not expected to make landfall in the United States. The country was particularly devastated by the Category 5 Hurricane Maria in 2017, where it caused up to $90 billion in damage and killed as many as 2,975 people.