Eye to Eye With Hurricane Ike

What images do the names Katrina, Rita, Gustav, Hannah and Ike conjure up in your mind? These names roll as easily and naturally off our lips as do the names of personal friends. These names, however, represent death and destruction. They are the names of recent Hurricanes.

Hurricane reports are becoming a staple item on the evening news. In a weird way, we come to know these works of nature on a personal level. It is my pleasure to introduce you to "Hurricane Ike."

I give particular attention to any mention of storms that are brewing in the Atlantic. I serve as a Chaplain with the North Carolina Disaster Medical Assistance Team (NC-1 DMAT). DMAT is a group of professional medical personnel (supported by a cadre of logistical and administrative staff) designed to provide medical care during a disaster or other event.

As part of the National Disaster Medical System, DMATs are designed to be a rapid-response element to supplement local medical care until other Federal or contract resources can be mobilized.. DMATs deploy to disaster sites with sufficient supplies and equipment to sustain themselves for a period of 72 hours while providing medical care at a fixed or temporary medical care site. The personnel are activated for a period of two weeks.

On Friday, September 5, I received orders directing me to report to the Piedmont Triad International Airport for an early afternoon flight to Tallahassee, Florida. Upon arrival in Florida, I would join other team members who were prepared to respond to any needs created by Hurricane Ike.

My every move was orchestrated as I moved swiftly to the cadence of the proverbial ‘ticking clock’ that allowed me just four hours to finish packing, make some last minute phone calls, send a few emails, say ‘Good-bye’ to my children, pet the dog and kiss my wife. Somehow, it all came together and I bolted through the airport to catch my flight.

I arrived in Tallahassee at the appointed time and met up with other team members. The ‘hurry-up and wait’ plan was now activated. It is important for DMAT’s to be in place so to have a shorter response time when the storm hits. All who are part of the system are aware of this and are accustomed to the waiting.

With great interest, we charted the path of Hurricane Ike and hung onto every prediction of his next location. In the meantime, we wait. Team members learn to deal with opposing inner thoughts. Individuals join the team to offer assistance in times of disaster, yet at the same time, there resides some hope that the storm will somehow disappear and everyone will live happily ever after. Excitement, guilt, disappointment, fear, and bravado are all vying for expression.

Hurricane Ike taunted the Florida coastline and brushed by the Keys with little effect. As Ike continued to travel west, he took a devastating swing across the Dominican Republic and turned in the direction of Texas. Thinking that our mission in Florida had ended and that we would be demobilized and return home, we were surprised to learn that we would be flown to Dallas, Texas to await Ike’s predicted landfall in Galveston.

Off to Dallas we flew. We were joined there by hundreds of other NDMS personnel who were anxiously awaiting the arrival of Ike. Ike’s fury began to pound the coast of Texas and the adrenaline began to pump among the responders who had come to help. Just twelve hours after Ike make landfall, teams were deployed to various spots in southeast Texas.

Our team was sent to Beaumont, Texas and then on to Houston Texas. Houston had sustained storm damage and was also a major site prepared for hosting evacuees. Our mission was to set up a field hospital on the campus of Rice University. The abundance of evacuees flowing into Houston coupled with local medical emergencies overloaded the local hospitals.

For nearly a week, we plied the trade for which we had prepared. Doctors, nurses and medics worked to treat men, women and children who were brought by ambulance to our location. While most injuries that we saw were minor, there was the ever-present psychological trauma that accompanies such an event. Most of the patients were treated and released and others were transported to local hospitals for continued care.

It was an honor to serve with the men and women of the NC-1 DMAT. These professionals unselfishly leave the safety of their homes, step away from their jobs and more significantly, take leave of their families to serve others.

The next time you catch wind of a storm building in the Atlantic Ocean or Gulf of Mexico, you can be assured that there are folks from our area who are making preparations to respond and offer care.

This article first appeared in Forsyth Family Magazine.