Task Force One In Louisiana As Gustav Approaches

INDIANAPOLIS -- As thousands evacuate the Gulf Coast ahead of Hurricane Gustav, a group of highly trained Hoosiers arrived in Louisiana Sunday.

Members of Indiana Task Force One -- the state’s elite urban search and rescue team -- departed from Indianapolis Saturday morning, headed for Houston, but were diverted early Sunday to Alexandria, La., said team spokeswoman Capt. Rita Reith.

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Report: Task Force One Headed Toward Gustav

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The 84-member group will setup at a military base and wait to see where the storm hits.

Task Force One is made up of doctors, structural engineers and canines, trained to sniff out survivors.

"We're the initial search contingent. The canines will pick up a scent, then we call the rescue team," said team member Janalee Gallagher.

The elite group is familiar with the Gulf Coast. Task Force One members responded to Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita in 2005.

"When people get in trouble, it's nice to there and help," said team member Pedro Caceres.

During Rita, the team rescued two people out of a collapsed building in Mississippi.

"It's good work," Gallagher. "I believe you got to give back some time."

Indiana Task Force One is one of 28 urban search and rescue teams in the country. They will be joined in Alexandria by members of Virginia Task Force Two, Arizona Task Force One and Nevada Task Force One, Reith said.

Indiana conservation officers have also been placed on high alert for a possible deployment to the Gulf Coast, said Indiana Department of Natural Resources spokesman Lt. Mark Farmer. About 20 officers will take with them equipment such as trucks, boats and ATVs.

In September of 2005, conservation officers provided marine patrol, search and rescue, police enforcement and water transport of search and medical teams on the Mississippi coast.

Hurricane Gustav blew into the Gulf of Mexico Saturday night, where it's expected to grow to a Category 5 storm as it barrels toward the Gulf Coast. It was still a powerful Category 3 storm Sunday, after barreling over western Cuba, leaving many injuries and heavy damage.