CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — As parts of East Texas begin a long road to recovery following dangerous and massive flooding, local help from the Coastal Bend is being sent there by way of the Coastal Bend chapter of the American Red Cross.
Gary Tucker has been volunteering with the Red Cross for three years. He said that he will be conducting home inspections to help those impacted by the recent flooding. He said the main takeaway is to help families get some type of financial relief from this devastating situation.
"From flooding and hurricanes that we have, they usually far exceed what people expect Mother Nature to do," Tucker said.
Inspecting homes is a specialty that Matthew Lynch with Blue Star Real Estate Inspection Services said can be beneficial, especially if you have the right tools.
"Moisture meters, infrared cameras -- infrared cameras can detect temperature differences, so that is a good way to detect moisture," he said.
It's a tool Lynch said comes in handy when a natural resource invades your home.
"There are a lot of things that water can damage," he said. "In fact, water is the number one enemy of a home."
For those in East Texas, Lynch said they may have their work cut out for them.
"Your insulation, go through your walls, from that way as well; electrical, water and electricity don't mix," he said.
Tucker said that when teams do deploy, it's normally a minimum of 14 days. He said it also takes a sizeable team to go in and evaluate those homes.
"I think in our area we saw that with Hurricane Harvey where it disrupted peoples lives for weeks, months and even years," he said.