46 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: OCTOBER 2017 Officers rescue residents and their dogs in the upscale River Oaks neighborhood after it was inundated with flooding from Hurricane Harvey on August 27 in Houston, Texas. Harvey made landfall north of Corpus Christi recently. The storm, which dumped over 50 inches of rain over a massive area, is one of the worst natural disasters to ever hit the United States. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) When a natural disaster strikes, as it did in the Houston area recently, the first priority is getting people out of the water to safety and higher ground. That part’s very difficult, but what comes next is even tougher – finding and identifying the dead. At the time this was writ- ten, the death toll was over 25 and rescue and recovery efforts were still at a fever pitch. The number of people whose lives were lost will climb. One woman was killed when heavy rains caused a tree to fall over onto her trailer home in the small town of Porter. “We know in these kinds of events that, sadly, the death toll goes up histor- ically,” Houston police Chief Art Acevedo said. “I’m really worried about how many bodies we’re going to find.” A Houston woman told reporters that six members of her family, including four of her grandchildren, died after their van sank into Greens Bayou in East Houston. Virginia Saldivar told said her brother-in-law was driving a van with other family members inside when a strong current took the vehicle over a bridge and into the bayou. The driver reportedly got out in time, but the others did not. “I’m just hoping we find the bodies,” Saldivar said. Experts are worried bout the potential harm to the environment that explo- sions and fires at chemical storage facilities will cause, with some predicting that the toxic effects could last for decades. Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo Death toll will rise Mother Nature may be forgiving this year, or next year, but eventually she’s going to come around and whack you. You’ve got to be prepared. – Shirtless wonder and fake newsman Geraldo Rivera EDUCATION BUILT FOR Life -Member, Fraternal Order of Police University Program -Partner, Internaঞonal Union of Police Associaঞons ŐIUPAő -Partner, FBI Naঞonal Academy Academic Partnership Program • Convenient 8-week classes to Ct yo†r b†sy lifestyle • T†iঞon grant for FOP and FBINAA members • Law enforcement/military training credit 800.553.4150 – UIU.EDU/APB