I don't know much about search, rescue and recovery except that it is only one of the early stages of disaster recovery. It seems to be well covered right now by people who know that space. In 7-14 days when the recovery is done those groups will leave and the survivors will be left trying to figure out what needs to be done next and trying to figure out how to move forward.
One of the main next steps is cleanup. There are others like health and welfare (medical and counseling) and rebuilding but the one that seems to be the hardest in the midst of the grief is cleanup.
We can help organize the manpower for targeted cleanup of properties impacted. That is the light demolition, debris removal, initial stabilization, cleaning, sorting of household effects, and providing cleaning materials for property owners affected by disasters. One of the goals is to minimize out of pocket expenses for cleanup so they can focus funds on rebuilding.
To be effective we need to be organized. I've done the work before and you can end up wasting a lot of time if you're not organized. There are several aspects/things we need:
Coordinator on the ground. @InkaUtexas says we have some contacts in Kerr County. Other places are affected too like Georgetown and Sandy Creek, we could help there if we get contacts.
When to go. If they are still doing recovery you'll get in the way. Some areas are not ready for cleanup yet but others are.
Where to go. We want to know the addresses and property owners we will work with ahead of time. I've done the show up and drive down the streets to find people that need help. Sometimes that is great and they get used to it after you've been there a while but they are probably a little overwhelmed and suspicious at the same time so if you can get that coordinator to tell you an address and the people that will be there it will help a lot. I've also done the drive up and check in at a table and they give you a job that a 10 year old could do like pick up trash or sorting used clothes donations while you have all your gear in your truck. If you have a site prearranged you'll be more effective.
What to bring. Depending on the site you might need chainsaws, generators, water pumps or even heavy equipment. There are standard lists of PPE and tools for demo work. We will also need cleaning equipment, mops, bleach, trash bags, etc.
Who is going. You can overwhelm a small job with too many people. We need effective teams of a few people each that can work independently on small jobs or swarm on a larger job. Scaling people to what the job needs is important. The more people we have the more teams we can deploy and tackle different kinds of jobs.
What am I looking for:
Points of contact to coordinate cleanup crews on site or people that know the area can put us in contact with people that need help so we can plan the jobs
On site Volunteers. Those with experience can be a crew lead and newcomers can bring their muscle, sturdy gloves and surly attitude
Organizers to help match teams with jobs, make sure they have the right gear, don't have any FEMA restrictions, etc.
Logistics support - organizing the collection supplies and being able to move them where they are needed. A lockable enclosed trailer would be a huge help. @BurntEyes knows more about this.
So if you're done bitching about what's wrong let's turn that into actually doing something productive. If we can get this done right then we can build the muscle memory to respond to other things in the future in a more effective way.
@immamac for awareness