CINCINNATI —

Hurricane Katrina devastated Louisiana and Mississippi 20 years ago. Portions of the Gulf Coast were changed forever, but in a time of crisis, there are often some who rush in to help.

Ohio Task Force 1 was one of the groups to answer that call for help 20 years ago. Advertisement

Jeffrey Newman is a captain with Sycamore Township Fire and Paramedics, and joined Ohio Task Force 1 right after 9/11. He served as the task force leader last year for the three-week response to hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Hurricane response has become routine for the team through the years; however, in 2005, they only responded to one other hurricane before Katrina pounded Louisiana and Mississippi.

To this day, Katrina is the costliest hurricane to hit the United States. Nearly 1,400 peop

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