Photo of game warden hugging son before leaving for Hurricane duty goes viral

SAN ANTONIO – A photo of a Texas game warden hugging his young son before heading out for Hurricane Harvey duty is going viral on Facebook.

The Texas Game Wardens shared the heartfelt moment on its official Facebook page Friday afternoon, one hour before Hurricane Harvey was upgraded from a Category 2 to a Category 3 storm.

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The game warden seen in the photo is Charles Needle who is stationed in Jacksboro, Texas, just 60 miles northwest of Fort Worth.

A spokesperson for Texas Parks & Wildlife said Needle is among a group of game wardens who will deploy anywhere between the Texas mid-coast to the upper coast.

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On Thursday, the Texas Game Wardens said, “Game Wardens across the state are preparing and staging critical response assets to conduct life safety responses as soon as (Hurricane) Harvey comes on shore.”

“We encourage residents across the state to stay weather wise, make appropriate plans and (need) any evacuations orders,” Texas Game Wardens said in a Facebook post. 

The photo of Needle and his son is receiving a lot of support from strangers across the state of Texas.

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One Facebook user said in a comment on the post: “Prayers to our Texas Game Wardens who are putting their lives on the line to protect those in the path of this storm! All law enforcement, first responders, may God be by your side!”

While others are sending their prayers to all of the first responders across Texas, many are also keeping residents affected by Hurricane Harvey in their prayers.

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“I'm praying so hard for Rockport and the whole Gulf coast right now. My heart feels so heavy knowing that there is going to be so much devastation in these areas,” one Facebook user said in the comments.

Forecasters said there’s a good chance Category 3 Hurricane Harvey may hit Texas twice, worsening projected flooding in affected areas.

The National Hurricane Center's official five-day forecast Friday has Harvey slamming the central Texas coast, stalling and letting loose with lots of rain.

Then forecasters project the weakened tropical storm is likely to go back into the Gulf of Mexico, gain some strength and hit Houston next week.

Stay with KSAT 12, Your Weather Authority, and KSAT.com for the latest details. Click HERE for more from the KSAT Weather team.

KSAT.com and KSAT 12 News will have the latest updates on Harvey and how it will affect the weather in the San Antonio area. Track Harvey: Interactive Tracker.

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