JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Although Harvey was downgraded to a tropical depression Wednesday evening, floodwaters continued to swallow the cities in Texas.
The U.S. military, including crews from Naval Air Station Jacksonville, have been mobilizing its resources from states across the country to help law enforcement and volunteers in the rescue effort.
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A crew of nine returned to NAS Jax Wednesday evening after conducting surveillance over part of Houston and the Louisiana coast.
The crew's task was to fly over the eastern Texas area to check basic infrastructure like bridges and dams, as well as help the Coast Guard in the search for victims.
"It definitely strikes a cord. I mean, Florida’s no stranger to hurricanes," U.S. Navy Lt. Marcus Costa said. "You know, we’ve got a lot of folks back in the squadron who are from Texas. You’re glad to see the relief efforts. You’re glad to see that everyone’s lending a hand. We’re glad that we can participate in any capacity that we could. Hopefully they know we’re here as part of the fight to keep people safe."
The National Hurricane Center still warned of continued flooding throughout southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana even though Harvey is now a tropical depression, with maximum sustained winds of 35 miles per hour.
Harvey is expected to produce an additional 4 to 8 inches of rainfall along the Texas-Louisiana line.