ETMC EMS sent two strike teams comprised of five ambulances and ten paramedics and emergency medical technicians to the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast to evacuate patients with medical needs ahead of Hurricane Gustav.
EMS also sent seven EMT’s on Beaumont to ride on evacuation buses back to East Texas so they could assist anyone with medical needs.
Medical personnel assisting with the storm were prepared to spend five days on the road helping move patients away from the hurricane.
Medical operations center set up in Tyler
Meanwhile, the medical operations center was also set-up at ETMC EMS in Tyler. Personnel from area hospitals and other health officials were communicating with the state on where evacuees needed to go for medical care.
Four shelters were set-up in Tyler to assist with over 600 special needs patients. Some patients were also transferred from hospitals in the Gulf Coast region to facilities in East Texas.
From William Moore, MD
Dr. William Moore, medical director for ETMC EMS said, “We learned a lot from Hurricane Katrina and Rita in 2005 and that’s part of the reason everything went so smoothly. Preparations are much better this time.”
Hurricane Gustav made landfall in Louisiana on Monday, September 1 as a Category 2 with 110 mph winds but quickly dropped to a Category 1 as it moved inland.
