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Colorado Task Force 1 returns home after back-to-back hurricanes

Teams responded to hurricanes Harvey and Irma
Posted at 9:13 PM, Sep 19, 2017
and last updated 2017-09-20 00:36:48-04

LAKEWOOD, Colo. -- An elite team of first responders made it back to Colorado after back-to-back hurricane relief operations.

Colorado Task Force 1 responded to Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida. On Tuesday, a caravan of 19 vehicles pulled back into their home base in Lakewood.  

While in Texas, they set up an evacuation shelter and helped people get to safety after massive flooding.

On the way back from Texas the team was re-rerouted to Florida as Hurricane Irma was about to make landfall.

"We called home and told everyone we weren’t coming back yet," said Brian LaFleur, a task force member who is also a North Metro Firefighter.

LaFleur is anxious to get back to his wife and four kids. He was gone for 20 days and said he was looking forward to hugs as well as a hot shower.

"I never experienced anything like this. The way that people touched our hearts, it can’t be described. We’ve been told that we also had a positive touch on those people, so that makes us feel really nice, really good," said LaFleur.

The task force members went door-to-door searching houses in the Florida Keys after Hurricane Irma. They methodically searched the islands making sure everyone was ok and assisting people who needed help.

“We would just move basically from house to house to house, and we would check and see if people were home if they were home did they need anything if they weren’t home we would just mark the house," said Steve Howard with Colorado Task Force 1.

Although the task force is back, they never know when they could be sent out again. Officials say they could be activated again if another major hurricane hits.

LAKEWOOD, Colo. -- An elite team of first responders made it back to Colorado after back-to-back hurricane relief operations.

Colorado Task Force 1 responded to Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida. On Tuesday, a caravan of 19 vehicles pulled back into their home base in Lakewood.  

While in Texas, they set up an evacuation shelter and helped people get to safety after massive flooding.

On the way back from Texas the team was re-rerouted to Florida as Hurricane Irma was about to make landfall.

"We called home and told everyone we weren’t coming back yet," said Brian LaFleur, a task force member who is also a North Metro Firefighter.

LaFleur is anxious to get back to his wife and four kids. He was gone for 20 days and said he was looking forward to hugs as well as a hot shower.

"I never experienced anything like this. The way that people touched our hearts, it can’t be described. We’ve been told that we also had a positive touch on those people, so that makes us feel really nice, really good," said LaFleur.

The task force members went door-to-door searching houses in the Florida Keys after Hurricane Irma. They methodically searched the islands making sure everyone was ok and assisting people who needed help.

“We would just move basically from house to house to house, and we would check and see if people were home if they were home did they need anything if they weren’t home we would just mark the house," said Steve Howard with Colorado Task Force 1.

Although the task force is back, they never know when they could be sent out again. Officials say they could be activated again if another major hurricane hits.