Evansville AMR Deployed To Florida For Hurricane Dorian Relief
AMR Ambulances set up in Florida - Facebook
Anytime there is a major weather event, I'm pretty much glued to The Weather Channel. As I tuned in this morning, I saw that a Hurricane Watch has been issued for the Florida Coast. Dorian has made landfall in the Bahamas as a Category 5, with winds up to 185 MPH!
Instead of siting on the couch watching the coverage, my friend, Crystal Elliott, is currently setting up shelters, and preparing for the worst in Florida. Crystal is basically a real-life superhero. She is a Lieutenant with the McCutchanville Fire Department and an EMT with American Medical Response (AMR). She is also a wife and mom to 3 beautiful daughters. You might also recognize Crystal from her time on the ice with The Iceman, as an Icicle and with The Thunderbolts, as an Aviator.
Crystal and Paramedic Ryan Rizen of AMR Evansville have been deployed as part of AMR's FEMA response in preparation of Hurricane Dorian's arrival. After a rapid deployment to meet with their group yesterday near Atlanta, they are now staging near Lake City, Florida awaiting orders and the storm to come.
I messaged Crystal, and asked her why it's important for her to help. This is what she had to say:
When I was contacted to go I couldn't find myself saying no. I had the opportunity to go to Houston for Hurricane Harvey and it was an experience like no other. Knowing I was helping people at one of the worst times of their lives made everything worth it. I have a favorite quote and right now it's very fitting...
" The best way to find yourself is to loose yourself in the service of others"