West TN Helene First Responders Honored by Trump in Jackson

Twenty-six first responders and multiple agencies from Madison County and surrounding counties were honored for their rapid response in the wake of Hurricane Helen.

After a two-week deployment to Unicoi County in East Tennessee tasked with finding, rescuing and treating 261 people, first responders returned home to be honored in a special ceremony on Nov. 1.

At the Jackson-Madison County Health Department, elected officials and senior emergency personnel thanked first responders for their preparedness and bravery during the deployment.

Sen. Ed Jackson, R-Jackson, presented each honoree with a signed letter of appreciation for their service from President-elect Donald Trump.

“He (Trump) said, ‘I need to recognize these people and thank them for what they did for people who were devastated,'” Jackson said. “They lost everything, many of them lost their lives and lost everything they had. I can’t imagine it, but he wanted to personally thank the first responders in a letter signed by him.”

Participating agencies include Lexington EMS, Jackson-Madison County Health Department, Jackson-Madison County Medical Examiner’s Office, Madison County Emergency Management, Madison County Fire Department and West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center.

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Ambulance Strike Teams, among the teams stationed in East Tennessee, are a conglomerate of five or more ambulances operating under a cohesive communications and command structure and responsible for quickly responding to disaster areas.

Brandon Ward, director of emergency services for the Tennessee Department of Health, says the West Tennessee Strike Force is the best in the state.

“We have some of the best EMS strike teams of any state in the United States, but let me be the first to tell you that our West Tennessee team is the best of the strike teams,” Ward said.

It typically takes eight to 12 hours to activate a strike force, but Ward says the West Tennessee team was ready to go in four.

He shared that in the past five years the team has been sent to Georgia, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina, but this was the first time they had to be activated in Tennessee.

Glynn Mooney, president of the West Tennessee Ambulance Directors Association, praised the efforts of first responders and the sacrifices of their families who stayed home and supported their loved ones while they were gone.

In addition to the county field hospital being deployed, assets such as cell phone towers were also sent to combat the lack of service at the scene.

Mooney, who is also director of Lexington Ambulance Services, described the impact on the number of people receiving help.

“261, that’s a lot of patients when you sent that many patients through our ambulance services that were transported for an hour to an hour and a half, transported one way because all the surfaces at the bottom were destroyed and, as you know, the Hospital was completely underwater,” Mooney said.

The following people have been recognized for their disaster relief efforts:

Taylor Allen, Madison County Fire Department
Daniel Beck, Madison County Fire Department
Mary Beckham, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Danny Beacham, Henderson County Emergency Medical Services
Adam Cook, Jackson-Madison Regional Health Department
Gary Deason, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Jason DeBruyn, Madison County Fire Department
Brad Dixon, Decatur County Emergency Medical Services
Eric Echtenkamp, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Nick Elder, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Tanya Garrett, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Jimmy Gilbert, Decatur County Emergency Medical Services
Robert Gilliland, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Trent Harris, Medical Examiner’s Office
Jeremy Hicks, Madison County Fire Department
Randall Jimenez, Madison County Fire Department
Brian Kemp, Madison County Fire Department
Debra Larkins, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Terry Lee, Medical Examiner’s Office
Kate Middleton, Jackson-Madison Regional Health Department
Lynn Mooney, Jackson-Madison Regional Health Department
Gary Moore, Madison County Fire Department
Russell Knowles, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Carlton Pope, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center
Eric Turner, Madison County Fire Department
Ryan Wilson, West Tennessee Emergency Medical Center

Sarah Best is a reporter for The Jackson Sun. To support local journalism, subscribe to the Daily Briefing. Here.