Team Rubicon working on flood cleanup throughout the week

Members of Team Rubicon are continuing efforts throughout the week to clean up houses with flood damage.

The non-governmental organization has about a dozen volunteers in Aberdeen and Hoquiam who are assessing damages to homes and trying to help residents who were hit the hardest by flooding and landslides. The group arrived in town last Friday and has been doing cleanup and light demolition work ever since.

As they fan out and help, many wonder: Who is Team Rubicon?

The group was started in 2010 after two retired U.S. Marines, William McNulty and Jacob Wood, led a medical team to Haiti after the country was hit with a catastrophic earthquake. McNulty and Wood found that some of the same skills needed on the battlefield are also necessary when helping areas recover from natural disasters.

Since the quake, Team Rubicon members have been dispatched across the United States and around the world to help communities struggling with natural disasters. The organization is broken into 10 regions across the U.S., with Washington, Alaska, Oregon and Idaho all being a part of Region 10.

The majority of the volunteers are from Washington, with some coming from Oregon and California, said Team Rubicon member Jason Keller.

According to Keller, the group is compiling damage information with a system call Palantir, which is utilized by a variety of government, public and private sector organizations to manage large quantities of data.

Team Rubicon is only here through the weekend, and wants to be able to give helpful information to other volunteer groups once they leave. After collecting information on which houses have been hit the hardest, workers will report to those homes and do what they can to help. So far, 10 to 12 houses have been worked on by the group, said Keller.

Light demolition work is being done by the group. Keller said his volunteers can only do so much with the tools and resources they have.

“We do demolition … if it can be done with the tools carried on our backs,” said Keller.

Volunteers with Team Rubicon will be assessing damage and doing cleanup throughout Sunday. Anyone who wants to help can meet with the group at 7:30 a.m. outside of the Home Depot Garden Center in Aberdeen. Those who would like to help are asked to dressed appropriately and bring boots, gloves and eye protection if they have it.

Residents who want help from Team Rubicon can call Coastal Community Action Program at (360) 533-5100 or contact Home Depot at (360) 533-6661.