NAV EX 3rd QTR. 2017 NavEx 3rd Qtr 2017 - FINAL Draft | Page 2
And the Storm Raged On;
HURRICANE HARVEY
Michael Heid, USCG Aux
Story by Thea Narkiewicz
25 August 2017: Hurricane Harvey, one of the most
devastating Category 4 hurricanes in the United
States, slammed into the southeastern part of Port
Aransas, Texas, just outside of Corpus Christi, Texas
with maximum sustained winds of 120 miles per hour.
Even though coastal communities were braced for
impact and evacuated earlier during the week, no one
could have predicted the catastrophic flooding and
devastation of southeastern Texas and southwestern
Louisiana in Harvey’s wake. Many U.S. Coast Guard
units in Texas have been destroyed and over a
thousand Coast Guard families, including Auxiliary
members have been displaced. Auxiliary facilities
were also damaged by flying debris and gale force
winds.
Looking out into the sunrise of the next day through
clouds, civilians in need of rescue saw glimpses of silver
linings defined by Coast Guard rescuers. Helicopters
from all over the United States containing rescue
swimmers rapelling down hoist cables and shallow-
2
draft vessels with Coast Guard personnel answered
the needs of approximately 10,500+ people and pets.
District Chief of Staff of Eighth Coastal Region,
Auxiliarist Charles “Chuck” Maricle, was recalled
from the National Auxiliary Convention (NACON) in
Orlando, Florida, with the sense of duty to self and
others and assisted in establishing, an information
and call center that was integral in supporting air and
surface facilities.
Even though his home was severely damaged by the
storm, Maricle worked tirelessly with Coast Guard
and Auxiliary personnel to assist in coordinating
rescue and response, assisting over 72,000 persons
requiring resources or rescue.
At a continued rate of 1,000 calls an hour, Auxiliary
members were able to provide call center support
for 30-45 minutes at a time until the emergency call
center was moved to Washington, D.C. The support
continued at the Incident Command Post (ICP) at
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