Gov. Abbott mobilizes 700 members of Texas National Guard ahead of Hurricane Harvey

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On Thursday, Gov. Greg Abbott mobilized the Texas National Guard in preparation of Hurricane Harvey.

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On Thursday, Gov. Greg Abbott mobilized the Texas National Guard in preparation of Hurricane Harvey.

See hurricane survival tips, power-outage recipes. Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez, AP Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez, AP Image 1 of / 36 Caption Close Gov. Abbott mobilizes 700 members of Texas National Guard ahead of Hurricane Harvey 1 / 36 Back to Gallery

Roughly 700 members of the Texas National Guard are standing by in preparation for Hurricane Harvey.

Gov. Greg Abbott mobilized the Texas Military Forces on Thursday. They are now awaiting to respond to impacted areas of Harvey, the first major hurricane to hit Texas in more than a decade.

"This is what we train for," said Brig. Gen. Patrick M. Hamilton, Commander of Domestic

Operations Task Force in a prepared statement. "And we're proud to stand beside our civilian partners, first responders and volunteers to serve the citizens of Texas."

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Officials said a UH-60 Blackhawk and UH-72 Lakota helicopter are also standing by in Austin and San Antonio for emergency assistance.

Service members will provide assistance with high-water rescues as well as shelter and evacuation needs.

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"This is Texans helping Texans – neighbors helping neighbors," Hamilton said. "While we don't

want to have to put our training to the test during a tragedy, our citizen-guardsmen remain

prepared to help save lives and property, when called."

To stay updated on weather alerts and conditions for Hurricane Harvey, visit Chron.com's weather page.

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