June 11, 2008 - Middletown, IN Flood

We quickly heard about Middletown, IN. It was a unique situation because not only did the town get hit with the flood, but just a few days earlier it got hit by a tornado. Almost every roof in the town was ripped off and when the water came it simply destroyed everything. Now this is one of the smallest towns I have ever been in. The corner country store that used to be there looks like it’s closed. But the people who live here seem very kind.

Because we work directly with and under the local government and emergency officials, I don’t often get a chance to personally meet with homeowners. But this small town was different; I was able to meet each person who lived in those homes.

Over the next few days we will clean up this whole town. It’s not big and won’t be too much work, but for some reason this place is special. It’s so small and out of the way, I’m not sure who would come to help these people.

June 10, 2008 - Indiana Floods

Flash floods began to hit all over Indiana without much notice. Main highways were washing out, and we knew help would be needed. We said our goodbyes in Parkersburg and arrived in Indiana early this morning. We visited a few communities that were hit the worst. One of them kicked us out. The emergency official said to me, “This ain’t my first rodeo, son. I know guys like you – you offer your help and in the end slip me a big bill”. This is the second time this has happened to me where people just can’t believe all the equipment is here for free. But I did not have time to allow my feelings to be hurt. So many communities are devastated in this area, and they need our help. I tipped my hat and wished him the best and turned and walked out of his office. When the men and I were getting in our trucks people were crying and asking, “Where are you going?” I had no choice but to explain that the local authorities did not want our help. It was hard for me to drive out of that city. There was a nursing home that needed power and many washed out roads that needed to be filled. We could have done so much there but I will always respect the leadership in charge. It is their city, not mine.