August 2024. Blues Vol 40 No.8

FROM THE EDITOR-AT-LARGE

FROM THE EDITOR-AT-LARGE Disasters take their toll. The toll a Natural Disaster takes upon First Responders and their Families is unmeasurable at times. While most survivors deal with their own family’s trauma, loss of power, services, food, property, etc., first responders deal with all the same issues and everyone else’s problems, as well. While the Natural Disaster itself can be a hurricane, like Hurricane Beryl, there are also flash floods, droughts, fires and large-scale health crisis. No matter what the disaster or incident you can bet first responders (from telecommunicators to chiefs) the responses required of us are immediate and demanding. Compounding the situation are power outages, heat, loss of food, resources, property damage and perhaps the most tragic of all, the loss of innocent lives. Lives which, no matter how hard we try to save, are eventually lost. We are left with the aftermath and the ensuing grieving of those directly affected. I don’t know about you, but I can still think of various tragedies and disasters I had an active role in, and I can still hear the pleas for help, screams of agony, and the frustrations of people who are now in complete and utter turmoil. And after dealing with all the devastation, you come home, soaked, filthy, exhausted, hungry and frustrated by your own damaged and powerless home only to face your family’s losses and problems. Coupled with longer shifts, no way to clean anything, (except the old-fashioned way with water, soap and a clothesline) how to feed your family and keep some form of normalcy. When disasters go on for days, weeks or even months, the tolls add up. Our ability to provide services on a professional level is severely diminished. For me, I see our community’s Senior Citizens and Children suffer the most and its emotionally and physically draining. It wears upon my mind and weighs down my soul. They are the most vulnerable of our society and usually do not understand what is happening and or how to deal with the trauma. I’ll wrap it up with this. If you are a first responder who has endured a Hurricane, Tornado, Flood, Fire or some other disaster, like it or not, you are a victim of traumatic event. The aftermath will be with you forever. Every loss you witnessed, will be remembered not only by those who suffered the loss, but by you as well. As a Chief, I would simply say that thank you doesn’t begin to cover what you have done for your community. I know and understand there will be some time you’ll need to regroup, regenerate and recover. I will do everything I can to assist you, this department and this community in recovering to not only where we once were, but beyond. Together, one step at a time, backwards or forwards, we will eventually rise from the ashes caused by the fire that we faced. Lastly, take care of yourselves, your family and each other. In the end, we are no help to anyone if we cannot even help ourselves. God bless… 8 The Blues - August ‘24

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