“You start seeing the reality, and you want to do more, and you want to be able to give people their peace of mind.”
KERR COUNTY, Texas — Over the past week, we have brought you stories about rescue teams helping with boots on the ground, boats and now horseback.
From the heart of Hidalgo County in the Rio Grande Valley, to the heart of Kerr County, with love and support. The city of Pharr Police Mounted Patrol, is another example of Texans helping Texans through tragedy.
“Our end goal, our end result, is to bring peace of mind to all of our families here in Ingram, and Kerr County,” said Senior Officer Irving Segura, City of Pharr Police Mounted Patrol.
When the search and recovery operations started to unfold in Kerr County, the City of Pharr Police Mounted Patrol, in the Rio Grande Valley, wanted to lend a helping hand.
Three officers along with officers Bruce, Bullseye and Bandit have made the trek from the RGV to help aid rescuers in their searches.
“Our main sole purpose of being on horse, is to patrol or search river banks, so we’ll divide. All our teams leads into different groups,” said Officer Segura.
Officer Segura says serving the Kerr County community on horseback has it’s advantages, especially with the rough terrain.
“There’s heavy rocks. There’s pretty much everything and anything you come across, so being on horseback, you have the advantage of being at a higher sight,” said Officer Segura.
With the vast amount of area needed to be searched, officer Segura says another advantage of their mounted patrol is the area they can cover on a daily basis.
“We’ll start checking a nine-mile radius or more depending. What we’re trying to do is just cover as much radius as possible,” said Segura.
Officer Segura says their mounted patrol, can also get through areas that no person would be able to get to.
As they have ridden through Kerr County, Segura says they have seen the reality of the devastation, and are understanding the heartbreak the area is facing.
They say while they are not from here, they stand with the community that has welcomed them with open arms..
“It almost makes us feel like we’re at home. Community members have been showing tremendous support. We’ve been getting items donated from waters to meals being cooked for us. I go to the gas station, people want to express their gratitude, people stopping us midway and praying for us,” said Segura.
Segura says they plan on being here through at least the end of the week.
They also say if you want to help, they recommend contacting Kerr County officials to see what their needs are.