7 Colorado Springs-area firefighters part of statewide team responding to Hurricane Laura

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- A statewide team of 90 firefighters, including six from Colorado Springs and one from Black Forest, arrived near the Louisiana-Texas line Thursday to respond to Hurricane Laura.

The team, which includes some civilians, is called Colorado Task Force One, working under the Federal Emergency Management Agency and will serve a two-week deployment.

The team left Thursday from Denver and arrived in Shreveport, Louisiana, early Thursday afternoon.

"We load up our equipment on semis and pickup trucks at our headquarters in Denver," said Lt. Aaron McConnellogue, of the Colorado Springs Fire Department. "We have to be on the road within four hours after getting the call."

22 Colorado fire departments are represented on the team.

"The civilians are emergency room doctors, some structural engineers and some K-9 handlers, as well," McConnellogue said.

He said the team's primary goal will be conducting search and rescue operations.

"We may do everything from hazardous materials to providing medical care and aid," he said. "All of our members have previous experience with hurricanes under FEMA. This is something we train for regularly."

McConnellogue said the team will arrive ready to set up its own accommodations, if necessary.

"We'll work in 12-hour shifts," he said. "Each team member will work in his or her area of specialty."

Despite their experience, the team may face unique and unexpected challenges.

"Sometimes, it's a lot of figuring out on the go," McConnellogue said. "For Hurricane Harvey in 2017, we went to Texas and were assigned to humanitarian aid. We weren't trained for that. We thought we'd have a few hundred people but we had nearly 2,000 in an abandoned warehouse."

He said the team had to provide water and restrooms, as well as security for aircraft operations to evacuate hurricane victims.

"But we got everything done," he said. "Then, on our way back home, we had to divert to Florida for Hurricane Irma. But the experience was incredibly rewarding."

The team will have to wear full gear, along with masks for protection against COVID-19.

"We'll bring masks for people who are being rescued to wear," McConnellogue said. "We'll forego giving them masks if there's an immediate threat to someone's life."

Hurricane Laura made landfall early Thursday morning as a Category 4 storm, believed to be the strongest to make landfall in the U.S. since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.