Several fire and rescue agencies are in the Keys to help with the cleanup effort after Hurricane Irma swept through the region.
On Wednesday first responders of Palm Beach County Fire Rescue, Strike Team 703 were welcomed back home after they spent a week in the Keys.
Family members were anxiously waiting for their return at the fire station, holding signs and shedding tears.
“Right now my heart is beating out of my chest,” said Jennifer Kim, whose husband is working with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue. “It’s like Christmas.”
During their stay in the Keys last week, the men had hardly any cell service. Family members waited for the call that their loved ones were safe.
“That call came through last night and I can’t be any happier,” Kim said under tears.
The unit was mostly stationed in Big Pine Key, an area hit particularly hard during Irma.
“It was bringing water to people, helping people move things,” said Strike Team 703 Chief Kevin Shaw. “We moved a car for a lady out of her driveway so she could begin to cleanup her house that she had 4 foot of water in.”
The images from the Keys are still with them.
“There’s a hundred miles of destruction if not more. It’s from one end to the other,” Shaw said. “I can’t explain it.”
At the end of a long week for the men and their families, they’re finally back home.
“They’re home, they’re here, they’re safe. It’s done,” said Cat Smith.
While Palm Beach County Fire Rescue has no more teams and fire trucks in the Keys, there are still some team members in that region to help out with emergency management operations.
