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Lavaca County officials praise local mutual aid after Matagorda storm; send ambulances to Houston-area relief
Summary
County emergency managers described rapid mutual-aid work after a nearby hurricane damaged Matagorda County 911 systems, credited local volunteers and ordered a hot-wash; the county also committed two ambulances and four crew through the state EMTF to assist Houston-area response, with state reimbursement.
County emergency-management officials on Wednesday credited local first responders and volunteers for quickly bridging communication gaps after a nearby hurricane disrupted Matagorda County’s emergency systems.
"We dodged a bullet," said Greg Burrelli, emergency management coordinator, after describing a county response that routed 911 traffic across county lines and used volunteers to relay calls when Matagorda’s communications went down. Burrelli said Lavaca County staff and first responders traveled into affected areas and helped answer calls until normal systems were restored.
Tim Decker, assistant chief for Blue Rock County EMS, told the court the state activated the Emergency Medical Task Force (EMTF) and asked for ambulances and crews to relieve strained local resources near Houston. "We were able to send four of our crew members and two ambulances," Decker said, and added the deployment is reimbursable by the state.
County leadership emphasized several operational lessons: the need for hardened or redundant communications (including satellite capability), tighter inter-county coordination, and a planned "hot wash" to capture what worked and what needs changing. The judge said staff will update the county’s communications plan and pursue equipment or procedural changes identified in the after-action review.
The court thanked individual responders and volunteers for improvised solutions that kept calls flowing, and noted that Matagorda officials expressed public gratitude where county teams assisted. Commissioners said the experience was a timely trial run for the county’s emergency plans and urged follow-up training and public education on preparedness.
Next steps identified by the court include holding a formal hot-wash meeting to document communications failures and fixes, tracking equipment needs for future storms, and coordinating with neighboring counties to strengthen mutual-aid protocols.
