BOSTON — Boats and three dozen first responders were back home in Massachusetts Sunday a week after Hurricane Dorian threatened to make landfall in Florida.
"We were prepared to do any kind of water rescue missions," Massachusetts Task Force member Christopher Coleman said. "We were prepared to do any kind of searches inside structures that had collapsed."
Had they been deployed to Grand Bahama and Abaco Island in the Bahamas, the task force -- made up of first responders from around New England -- might have engaged in those kinds of operations. But nothing like that was ever needed in the United States.
"We're all very happy it was not as predicted," Sean Brown added.
When the group left a week ago, among the possible scenarios was a category four hurricane making landfall in Florida or a bit farther north.
"And that's what our job is," said Coleman. "To go down and support people on the worst day of their life."
Dorian went north but by the time the storm hit North Carolina over the weekend it was down to a category one.
So hauling all the equipment and personnel south for a hurricane that largely wasn't might seem like a significant waste. But it was important to get into place before knowing the hurricane's exact path. And the task force did make good use of the down time.
With the weather holding up in the south, the team got some training done.
"We want to stay sharp, we want to stay ready," Brown said.
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