Fire and EMS crews from Sampson County and the city of Clinton are in western North Carolina, using their skills to do everything from clear roads and answer fire calls to going house to house to help residents trapped in areas devastated by flood waters left in the wake of Hurricane Helene. (Courtesy photos)
Fire and EMS crews from Sampson County and the city of Clinton are in western North Carolina, using their skills to do everything from clear roads and answer fire calls to going house to house to help residents trapped in areas devastated by flood waters left in the wake of Hurricane Helene. (Courtesy photos)
Even as local churches, civic organizations and individuals collect — and deliver — water and other necessities for those across western North Carolina devastated by Hurricane Helene, county and city rescue and fire personnel are deep in the trenches offering their expertise and help as well.
County EMS Director Rick Sauer is in Haywood County working with the Incident Management Team there to assist in the Waynesville area, helping oversee first responders coming in from across the state and nation to one of the hard hit regions of the mountains.
A team of local firefighters from Taylors Bridge, Clinton and Harrells left Wednesday for a seven-day deployment, answering a call for help from the McDowell County Rescue to assist in recovery efforts, and another joint team of Sampson EMS providers, including the Suttontown EMS, are already in Caldwell County, where they’ve been since Monday.
Along with personnel from Sampson, first responders took with them a four-wheeled drive ambulance to assist with the life-threatening emergencies still taking places in mountainous areas.
Clinton Fire Chief Hagan Thornton said two of his firefighters left Wednesday for McDowell County, joining Taylors Bridge and Harrells volunteers and one from Pender in making a four-person team. Two additional men were sent with a pair of volunteers from the Newton Grove Fire Department Monday to Spruce Pine and Ledger in Mitchell County.
“We are all working together to assist in any way we can,” Thornton stressed in a telephone interview. “Most of these guys want to go, they want to help in any way they can.”
Thornton said assignment rosters have been going out since Hurricane Helene hit, showing the fire departments that need assistance.
“The Newton Grove chief saw what was needed and was going to staff it; he called me and we sent two with them on Monday to Mitchell County. Then yesterday (Wednesday) the rescue association folks sent out a call for a quick fill for a heavy duty rescue for McDowell County. Taylors Bridge had a truck with one person and they needed four certified in rescue, so we (Clinton) sent two people, and they sent the truck and one from Taylors Bridge, one from Harrells and one from Pender.”
Those certified in rescue, Thornton said, are designed to help in heavy rescue and are trained in things like rope specialty, high angle, trench and confined space rescue.
While he wasn’t exactly sure what the teams from Sampson were doing, he said he expected the crews would handled anything from welfare checks and clearing streets and houses to handling natural gas leaks and helping remove people trapped in residences. “They will be doing pretty much anything that is needed, and there is a lot needed.”
The fire chief said he communicates with his staff at least once a day, mainly because cell service is spotty and so many people are trying to get calls out to friends and loved ones.
“They are all safe and doing fine. They are helping, and that’s exactly what they wanted to do,” Thornton said.
He stressed the importance of good communication between his fire department and others throughout the county, saying between that open line and the mutual aid agreements both the county and the state have it made pulling together and helping those in need far easier and faster.
“We have a good relationship with other folks in the county. We can put people together, split a crew and still have folks here to handle calls. It works well, and it has this time,” the fire chief stressed.
And, he said, having crews up there helping is vital to an area in desperate need.
“I’ve talked to other fire chiefs and friends up there. There are entire towns that are just gone, wiped away. People lost. There are fire stations that are gone, fire trucks lost. It’s terrible. We are trained to help in these situations. I’m glad we have teams there.”