NEW ORLEANS, La. — A team of first responders from Utah is in Louisiana as Hurricane Ida approaches the coast.
READ: Hurricane Ida intensifying ahead of expected landfall in Louisiana on Sunday
Four members of Utah Task Force 1, which is one of 28 Federal Urban Search & Rescue response teams in the country, were deployed and have safely arrived, the agency wrote in a Facebook post.
The hurricane is expected to hit New Orleans and other parts of the Louisiana coast on Sunday — the 16-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Experts predict it could be a Category 4 storm when it makes landfall, with sustained winds of up to 150 miles per hour possible.
The group will be part of FEMA's "White Incident Support Team."
The UT-TF1 members who are there are:
- Mike Ulibarri; Operations Section Chief
- Keith Bevan; Planning Section Chief
- Keith Plagemann; Deputy Logistics Section Chief
- Embret Fossom; Deputy Plans Chief
Two members of the task force went to Boston last weekend to help plan for Hurricane Henri response.
