PANAMA CITY, Fla. — A paramedic who volunteered to go to Florida and help with EMS operations after Hurricane Michael spoke out about his experience.
WPDE reported that Myrtle Beach Fire Rescue paramedics Michael Gilbert and Thad Bowman have not stopped working since they arrived in Panama City Thursday morning.
“There are a couple of semis here in the mall parking lot where we are that are overturned and behind me, kind of behind me. Directly across 231, there are two trains that are flipped over on the tracks,” Gilbert said. “It’s been non-stop. You can probably hear the sirens in the background.”
Emergency officials have been knocking on doors to find people who need help since there is no power for 911 systems.
“We’re really seeing a wide range of everything,” Gilbert said. “Just general illness, trauma, they had somebody that was trapped earlier that they had to remove, they used our team, a lot of building collapses.”
Gilbert added that crews cannot work at night due to post-hurricane hazards.
“Trees, power lines, it’s just very dangerous to be out after dark,” he said.
The paramedic said he volunteered to help for a reason.
“It’s our line of work. It’s what we like to do,” he said.