by John Mullins, VMAT3 Team
posted October 31, 2005
I am back from my deployment to south Mississippi and thought I would give you all an update on what we did and what happened. I was deployed with my team, VMAT3,the members of which are all veterinarians, veterinary technicians, or first responders. Our ages range from 23 to 70, both men and women. All have received training in addition to that for their profession. There are about 65 members of my team of which about 25 are deployed at a time. There are 4 VMATs, VMAT1, VMAT2, VMAT3, and VMAT5. In contrast there are over 300 DMATs or Disaster Medical Assistance Teams that are able to set up human hospitals and render medical aid to people.
I like to think we have higher standards than the humans. We are part of the National Response Plan. We are under NDMS, the National Disaster Medical System, which is under FEMA; as such we are federal when we are deployed. We are responsible for paying for our uniforms and buying our personal equipment that constitutes our jump bag which we are to keep ready at all times. We are not paid when we are doing training and there is a lot of training required. We are required to attend a monthly conference call. One must apply for membership, be approved, pass physical, and have security clearance and receive vaccinations. There is then online training of many hours worth of courses in things ranging from triage to the Incident Command System to law and hazardous materials. In addition there are training courses we have to attend during the year.
We provide veterinary medical treatment and address animal and public health issues resulting from disasters of any sort, either natural or man made. VMATs have assisted USDA, the United States Department of Agriculture, with foreign animal disease outbreaks. We are available to help with search and rescue dogs. My team has been deployed for hurricanes, for the G8 Summit, and for the World Trade Center bombing. Our directive is to be able to be in the field in less than 24 hours after being called up. We are to have three days worth of food and water. We have a cache that consists of our hospital, medical supplies, generator, tents, cots, and everything we need to be self sufficient and to do our jobs. Being part of the federal system we are regulated by federal law; we cannot deploy ourselves. A disaster must be declared by a State Governor and then submit a request for federal assistance. If the president declares a disaster federal resources are made available. It is at this point that a request for VMAT assistance can be made. If a State requests a VMAT without this federal declaration then the State itself must fund the deployment. If a Federal Disaster is declared then the Federal Government covers most of the cost. The laws regulating the use of federal resources on a State level are very specific and this is designed to prevent the centralization of power and to account for how our tax dollars are spent. The governor of Louisiana and the mayor of New Orleans discovered this to their sorrow.
We were predeployed to Anniston, AL. where we waited for the hurricane to hit. We were staying at a motel with members of DMATs and DMORTs, Disaster Mortician Response Teams and people who had fled the hurricane from the coast. We had to wait there for a couple of days while the assessment of the damage was made and a place for us to deploy to was found. The way things are done in a disaster is that resources are held back in a staging area away from the reach of a disaster, in this case a hurricane, so they are not damaged or destroyed. Then they have to be sent to an affected area but not to the extent that the conditions prevent the job from being done. That is one generally cannot set up in an area of total destruction. In our case we were activated while in Anniston and sent to Jackson, Ms. There we were under the command of the State Veterinarian. The State Veterinarian gave up passes that allowed us to enter the affected area. There was a team that stayed behind in Jackson to help with animals that were coming up from the coast going into the shelter. These animals had to be decontaminated from the filth that covered them from the flood waters. Some of the people who were doing decon wound up with respiratory and skin problems.
The rest of us were sent to Hattiesburg. There we set up our hospital on the site of the County Multipurpose Center. We have the ability to do surgery, to do medical tests, to make digital radiographs, and to conduct all the tasks that one does in any veterinary hospital. In addition we were sent out as strike teams by the state veterinarian to conduct assessments which are to find out what was going on in the counties of south Mississippi. Remember there were no telephones. The different clinics, stock yards, shelters and farms could not be called via telephone. There was no cellular coverage, we saw no television, and there were no newspapers. Any contact was via our satellite phone which could only be used for official business or one had to physically go and speak to someone face to face. Gasoline was a problem and there were lines up to two miles long in a lot of places when the stations had gas. Since we were Federal we were able to get gas at Camp Shelby, an army base, though one day we were there without any gas.
The assessments showed that a lot of the clinics were totally destroyed, some that had slight damage and there were some which were not damaged but were without power and were inoperable. Almost everything south of Interstate 10 was destroyed. We maintained a hospital in Hattiesburg for the duration of our deployment. We were responsible for the care of the animals in the animal shelter that belonged to people in the Red Cross shelter who had come up from the gulf. Both of these shelters were on the site of the multipurpose shelter. There were some owners who stayed in tents because their animals were not allowed into the shelter and the owners did not want their animals staying in the shelter for the animals and did not want to be separated from their animals. We were also responsible for caring for horses that had been brought in due to injuries or because their owner’s property had had its fencing destroyed. One horse had cuts on its legs from where it had tried to climb up onto the roof of its barn when the storm surge came in and it had to swim for 3 hours. Many of the horses were without food for several days just after the hurricane. We carried supplies to the veterinary clinics which were operating due to the fact that in a lot of cases they could not get deliveries of medical supplies and we had access to refrigeration. We did assessments of the dairy industry which was in a serious problem without electricity and this information helped the state veterinarian decide where to send resources. We supplied veterinary services to the area around Hattiesburg while the local clinics were not able to operate. We did decontamination on the animals brought up from the coast and did triage on them. We provided support to the Humane Society of the United States.
We sent out strike teams to the gulf to set up a satellite clinic where animals were collected and from which they would be sent to Hattiesburg. This clinic also provided assistance to the local police and to animal control and medical care to local animals.
Many of the people who had animals told the same story: that the animals were the only thing they had left. There were many people who remained on their property with the houses destroyed living in tents and under tarps with their animals. There were thousands of acres of forest that were destroyed with trees down and unusable around Hattiesburg and that city was 60 miles inland from the coast. Down by the coast there were miles upon miles of destroyed homes and businesses. There was grass on the power lines six miles inland from the storm surge. There were cars on top of houses and in trees. There were bodies of cattle on buildings. This disaster was so severe that FEMA is allowing their workers and equipment to go onto private property. Prior to this one had to put the debris at the edge of one’s property as FEMA, being federal, could not come onto private property. This is so that searches can be done for bodies in the wreckage.
I am very proud of what I did. I was there for a total of four weeks. I was there with one of the best groups of people I have ever worked with and our ongoing mission is to be always ready to be deployed at any time for any emergency involving animals. I am now adding a paragraph of the September 30, 2005 VMAT situation report:
According to today’s VMAT report, public criticism of the response efforts has only served at this point to negate, in the member’s mind, all of their hard work and efforts on behalf of the profession. Despite reported problems with this disaster response in general, VMAT wants to convey how very hard all of the responding groups, including the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), are working to help both people and animals during this horrific disaster. This is the biggest thing that has ever hit our country, and VMAT personnel have worked so incredibly hard for over 4 weeks now, with 2 more weeks likely
VMAT members on the ground hope that the focus right now can be on what has been accomplished and not so much on what has not. Time and after action reports will help to identify areas needing improvement and at that time disaster response can be evaluated and improved. Improvement is always the goal after each disaster, because response can always be improved.
In addition this was written by one of my team members, Dr Tanya Higgins
Tanya’s Letter
Hi All,
I came back late last night and after greeting my anthony and family and kissing the furry kids. I was in bed by 8:30 p.m. It was in one word: surreal. Even though I was there two weeks after Katrina had made its direct hit in Waveland and Pearlington, Mississippi, it was an eerie experience to visit there after. people still had blank and dazed looks in their eyes and just weariness abounded. houses within a few miles of the beach, were just rubble or just the concrete base of their house remained. there would be steps and driveways leading to absolutely nothing. in particular, there were the remains to an Episcopalian Church and all that remained was the steeple set on its base. the broad, welcoming steps led to this neat, white pristine steeple and that was it. Walking down the devastated streets, we saw remnants of people's lives: underwear, papers, shoes, tattered clothing, etc. I likened it to being at a landfill except these were people's houses. it was absolutely eerie as it was pure silence and the smell of sulphur and sewage and I'm sure decaying flesh filled the air, two weeks after Katrina tore its path through this small town and city. Broken bridges led nowhere and the few trees which remained had debris - people's clothing, as high as 25 to 35 feet, the result of which were the huge tidal surge which drowned this town. The news broadcasts only shows a glimpse of the devastation. Waveland and Pearlington haven't even received a nod as New Orleans, approximately 35 miles east of it received all the news media. Yet this was where katrina made its direct hit. While we were on our ghastly sightseeing tour, (a privilege given to us because we had FEMA badges) it was mind-boggling to witness such destruction. I consoled myself that surely these people were evacuated and made it out and got their family members and animals out. However, while I sought confirmation of my heartful hopes, my team leader, Bill who partook in 9/11, just shook his head in denial abashing my hopes. He then told me that FEMA just started its "dmort" operation that very day, where they literally sift thru debris searching for human remains, identifying the missing. This town, Waveland went through Hurricane Camille and people believed that they too would survive such calamity. they stayed and met their untimely demise as a result. the utter silence, empty of jovial laughter and birdsong remained. The few trees that remained did not provide enough shade against the scorching heat. Firehouses, post offices with one mail bag on the mud floor remained. at one location, a make-shift med clinic in the WalMart parking lot was created with one wall made out of the many flooded, damaged, wrecked cars piled together as a reinforced wall. cars in houses, boats where they shouldn't be. hopefully these vehicles of transportation where empty when katrina hit. Stories abound where people said the town flooded within ten minutes. enough time for some but for others..not. We, VMAT, (veterinary medical assistance team) were stationed in Hattiesburg, Miss., about an hour north of Waveland. There, the Red Cross had set up a local shelter at the multi-purpose center. also located at this location was the Humane Society. Our job (VMAT) was to provide veterinary support to the local community and work with the Humane Society. Evacuees that owned animals were our primary responsibility. every day, especially the first week, we heard many sad tales but also inspiring and miraculous tales of "survivorship", if there is such a word. Not only human but wonderful stories about these marvelous creatures. Horses who swam for hours on end and dogs swimming and staying in little alcoves of the ceiling where they were found. Every day I heard: "All I have left doc, is my dog." Tears came to my eyes every day our paths crossed. people who had absolutely nothing and resilient creatures clinging to them. the love was abundant and tangible. Their lives were these dogs,cats, horses and even pot-bellied pigs. I met "Tabasco", a horse whose home was blown away and flooded and whose adventure of surviving deadly Katrina was witnessed by his human neighbors who were on their roof. This horse swam for hours on end around his home until the water receded. he tried to help his other two buddies, but those horses drowned. He suffered multiple lacerations as a result when he swam too close to the sharp edges of the flooded roof. At one point, the neighbors report a roofing beam had fallen across his withers and Tabasco went down and they thought that was it, but no he came up again and continued to swim relentlessly. As I heard this story, I calmly held this horse as his wounds were attended to and even given showers with water - surely a horrible reminder of what he went thru! but this stoic horse just stood there resolutely and waited for precious treats given to him by all and sundry. I was filled with respect for this magnificent creature. What he went through and yet he stood there stoutly as we showered him with water- what he swam against, what he survived. amazing.. truly amazing. I met "Peetee" Edwards, a heartworm positive, fat, cryptorchid (for you non-vet people: one testicle), horrible teeth, 12-year-old, Jack Russell. Peetee suffered from the Napolean Complex and thought he could take on the biggest dog. He got so worked up seeing other dogs that he heat exhausted himself. He subsequently presented himself twice with temperatures of 105/106. At that point, I just went and collected Peetee every morning and gave him a cage to sleep in in the VMAT tent/hospital. All of us bonded with him and spoiled him rotten. We couldn't even tell him goodbye on Saturday as I (can't speak for everyone else) knew I would burst into tears. His father went through hell and we found him in donated scrub shirts in the shelter when we went to find out what was happening with his dog. He adamantly declared that he would never give up Peetee, as his dog was all he had. His wife was in the hospital for life-threatening surgery. His car filled with all his meager possessions. We got hugs of appreciation from him but as we left on Saturday, Mr. Edwards as well as Peetee's future remained uncertain. He, at that point was still waiting for the promised trailer by FEMA, and so had to go to the ymca for another three days. Being with the other 900 animals at the temporary shelter, it was easy for Peetee to fall through the cracks and "become lost." The two weeks I was there, it happened. It was human nature. just one mix-up with paperwork and little Peetee could be lost in the shuffle. Pother people gave hugs or strong handshakes of gratitude to the free veterinary care. As I handed back the precious animals, my hands filled with a year's supply of preventive heartworm meds and tick and flea meds, they looked up and asked me: "how much doc?" When I replied "nothing", tears of gratitude filled their eyes and they hugged their precious furry children closer to their hearts. in that instant, I knew why I went and put my own life on hold for two weeks. this was all worth it. This incredible bond we share with God's marvelous creatures. Because life can change in an instant and you know, all we might have left is our precious animals.
Love, Tanya
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