Team Rubicon hit Sandy's front lines

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War veterans hit Sandy's front lines for rescues, cleanup

November 1 2012 - Up to his armpits in flood water, flanked by darkened buildings and submerged vehicles, Iraq veteran Peter Meijer felt oddly at home Monday night as he trudged through the streets of Brooklyn at the height of Sandy's fury: "The right place at the right time with the right mission."

With a fellow veteran at his side, Meijer had driven a van from a Brooklyn high school-turned-evacuation shelter to the Gerritsen Beach neighborhood, stopping only when the van's tires met the storm surge. From there, the pair went on foot. With 911 phone lines down, the Army reservist was trying to reach and rescue a man who had climbed into his attic with his dog to escape the rising tide. Back at the shelter, the man's wife — who had been on the phone with him — pleaded Meijer to try to save him.

"She said the water was up to his knees, then it was up to his waist. Nobody could reach the police. We were 15 minutes away. I peer-pressured my partner, Marvin Avilez, into going out there," said Meijer, 24, who served in Iraq during 2010 and 2011. "When the road ended, we hopped out. On the way, we found a dude wading in the water, pulling a row boat. He was a former Marine recon guy, going house to house to rescue folks. read more>>>

Veterans Respond to Hurricane Sandy with Team Rubicon

11/01/2012 - I joined the military in a time of war to help people in need. I didn’t know it at the time, but my natural proclivity for risk-taking drove me to eight years of service and a 12-month tour in Afghanistan. While my life as an entrepreneur has been wildly fulfilling, I still had a desire to help people in crisis after I left the military, so I joined Team Rubicon.

Team Rubicon is a non-government organizations made up of first responders, medical professionals and military veterans that deploy to global disaster zones in need of assistance. We’ve responded to disasters in Alabama and Missouri, Haiti, Chile, Burma, Sudan, Pakistan and now to areas affected by Hurricane Sandy. read more>>>