LISA MARCHESONI, Senior Writer
Posted: Sunday, May 3, 2009 8:13 am

Emergency responders answering Good Friday tornado victims’ calls for help knew what had to be done and acted rapidly, the county’s emergency director said.

While setting up the Emergency Operations Center, Director Roger Allen of the county’s Emergency Management Agency listened to dispatchers relaying information to law enforcement officers, firefighters, paramedics, rescue squad volunteers and volunteer firefighters.

“I think every agency did an excellent job and I feel comfortable if it was to happen again tonight, we would have the same response,” Allen said. “The citizens here should be proud of our first responders from law enforcement to volunteers.”

The response didn’t happen by chance. Since the late 1980s, the county’s fire services used the Incident Command System to respond to fires more efficiently. Police and EMS began training later.

Incident Command is a leadership management system dealing with an emergency, Allen said. There are functional groups within the Incident Command System and jobs and responsibilities within the command system.

When used properly, the Incident Command system is able to manage any size incident more efficiently. Agencies train together under the same system so they flow together. Once checking a home, firefighters, law enforcement and paramedics knew how to mark affected homes with orange paint and symbols so there was little if any duplication of services.

“We took care of the calls and we took care of the responses for help in quick and timely manner,” Allen said. “I’d say the Incident Command system worked well.”

Gib Backlund, chief of operations at Stones River National Battlefield, said Incident Command grew out of the U.S. Forestry Service, developing into an organizational structure to manage emergencies. Backlund took the class as a firefighter in the mid-1980s.

“It’s a real handy system for mobilizing people and establishing a chain of command for large-scale, complicated incidents that require a lot of coordination,” Backlund explained.

The battlefield activated the Incident Command system to deal with tornado damage.

Murfreesboro Fire Chief Cumbey Gaines said firefighters responding to the tornado initiated the Incident Command system that “structures your response so there’s no room for freelancing. You get instructions from command that filters through the ranks for strategy and logistics.”

Murfreesboro fire chiefs used Incident Command to provide a systematic approach to search houses and account for each home. “I’m proud of the Murfreesboro Fire Department and not only because I’m the chief but because they were called upon and they answered the call and did it in a professional, caring manner,” Gaines said. “That’s one memory I’ll always hold.”

Since taking office in December, Gaines listened to employees who believed the department lacked training in urban search and rescue. State Farm provided funding for three GPS units and three commanders and the training coordinator completed an advanced search and rescue course the day before the tornado struck. Because of their training, firefighters sped up the response and efficiency when searching for trapped tornado victims.

Unfortunately, they weren’t able to save the lives of mother Kori Bryant and her 9-week-old daughter, Olivia, who died from injuries suffered in the Good Friday tornado. “I will always carry that with me,” said Gaines.

Through more training, firefighters will learn how to do a better job in response. “It will enhance our effectiveness to mitigate a situation like that,” Gaines said.

Allen was grateful too to all the volunteers, individuals, church groups, businesses and organizations who wanted to help fellow citizens. EMA formed a database for any future emergencies. “It’s heartwarming to see the outpouring from this community,” Allen said. “I would just like to say thank you to all of them.”

As a lifelong Murfreesboro resident, Gaines will also hold the memory of the destruction in his hometown. “It was devastating,” Gaines recalled. “Yet at the same time, everything was being taken care of by so many people. You felt a sense of calmness.” Some of those emergency responders shared their stories.

Rookie firefighter Jeremy Morris watched the tornado, then grabbed medical bags and searched for victims at Regency Park near Haynes Drive. “We went house to house hollering ‘fire department, anybody hurt?” Morris recalled.

Firefighter Kernie Cothran said husband/father John Bryant gave information about where his missing wife, Kori, and 9-week-old daughter Olivia might be located.

“We were praying to God and lifting up debris as easy as we could,” Cothran said.

Firefighters joined neighbors digging through piles of debris until someone yelled, “I think I found her.”

Morris observed a baby car seat lying upside down. “We dug the car seat out and checked the baby,” Morris said. “I picked up the baby and carried her to the ambulance crew.” Cothran said Olivia’s death hit him hard since he has a 10-week-old daughter. “You’ve got to have nothing but care for that family,” Cothran said.

Firefighters resumed the search with dogs double checking them. Morris has never seen that much destruction and chaos.

“I’ve never been around anything that bad,” Morris said. “It was like something I’ve never seen before. I hope I never see it again.
What I will never forget seeing is the tornado come through.”

Acting Capt. Steve Melton, a 19-year veteran, saw the funnel cloud and responded to Regenwood Drive. “It was the most traumatic thing I’ve ever seen, hoping we wouldn’t find victims,” Melton remembered.

A neighbor found Kori Bryant. “We tried to help her,” Melton said. “An EMS (Emergency Medical Services) supervisor and two firefighters who are EMTs started CPR. We did everything we could medically.”

Under the Incident Command system, they sprayed orange paint on houses to show the house was checked. After clearing a house, they notified the command post who marked the house off on a large map.

“We wanted to double check to make sure no one was left behind,” Melton said. Melton will always remember April 10 as his “most tragic day in 19 years.”

“People walked up to you with their homes destroyed with tears in their eyes,” Melton recalled. “They’re in terrible shape but wanted to thank you. That is something I will carry away with me.” Paramedic Adam Rose, a 10-year veteran, and partner Jason Reynolds, an 11-year veteran, watched the tornado pass over the Emergency Medical Services’ Special Operations Response Team building on Fortress Boulevard.

“It sounded like a jet engine touching down,” Rose remembered. Moments later, they responded to a crash on Interstate 24 where the tornado caused a tractor-trailer to overturn with three other cars involved in the crash. Three patients suffered critical injuries. The tractor-trailer driver told Reynolds he saw the sky as the tornado flipped his rig over.

After clearing the patients, they responded to West Park subdivision across from The Avenue to search of about 30 to 40 homes. They marked houses with orange paint to designate it was searched for survivors.

“Everybody looked shell-shocked,” Reynolds said. Once someone learned their loved one was OK, they asked what they could do to help. When his shift ended, Reynolds held his three young children.

“I wouldn’t know what to do if I lost my wife and any of my kids,” Reynolds said. “My heart just hurt for those two (the Bryants).” Rose was thankful his wife and children were out-of-town. “I was overwhelmed,” Rose remembered. “We don’t get tornadoes often. It was unbelievable.”

Murfreesboro Detective Chris Ashley and spokesman Kyle Evans rode together when the tornado picked up their vehicle. “I can’t explain it,” Ashley said, but described how he looked up and the car “wobbled back and forth. It’s terrifying. The good Lord’s with you. You have to ride it out.”

When they landed, they realized they both should be dead. They immediately checked houses for survivors in the rubble near Deerfield where multiple homes were destroyed. “The destruction was the greatest thing I remembered,” Ashley said. “Still, there was an amazing amount of outreach, people out looking for their neighbors. They pulled together. People just wanted to help.”

Within an hour, city crews began clearing streets. Evans said off-duty officers came in to work, some who were out-of-town. “Everybody was out there in a team effort,” Evans noted. “Everybody was a hero that day.”

Veteran firefighter Billy Sauls didn’t know where to begin when they reached Haynes Drive moments after the tornado. “We knew people were missing,” Sauls said.

Bystanders helped. Despite the mass confusion, Sauls was impressed by the way neighbors helped each other. “I guess that’s why they call us the Volunteer State,” Sauls said.

Firefighter Clay Estes compared the search under debris to “looking through a landfill.” The first hour of searching was confusing with such a wide path. “I had no idea how much damage there was,” Estes said.

He saw houses picked up, landing on cars. “It’s a power you can’t comprehend,” Estes said. “I’ve lived my whole life here. It didn’t look like Murfreesboro. That’s probably something I will remember. I hope we don’t ever have another one.”

Firefighters Steve Ellison and Taylor Lasseter responded to the Sulphur Springs Road area where the tornado wiped out houses on Tomahawk Trace and Battleground Drive.

“Words can’t really describe” what Ellison viewed. “It was pretty bad,” Lasseter said. Ellison said children especially seemed to be shocked at the losses of houses, pets and property. “I know one particular girl got upset because she couldn’t get her inhaler,” Ellison said.

“Taylor went in to see if he could recover it.” Lasseter was impressed because neighbors knew who was out-of-town so firefighters didn’t have to search a house unnecessarily. “It made our job easier,” Lasseter said.

Ellison said neighbors worked together regardless of race, creed or culture. “On that day, you became one,” Ellison noted. Lasseter will always have a greater respect for tornadoes and will take cover. Ellison worried about his family but couldn’t get through because phone lines were jammed. He knew he had a job to do and kept searching.

“At the end of the day, I couldn’t think of a better place to be,” Ellison said. Once he went home, Lasseter cuddled his daughter all day. Ellison canceled a fishing trip to spend time with his children. When his son kissed him and told him he loved him, Ellison thought about John Bryant whose wife and daughter were killed. “He (Bryant) lost all that,” Ellison said.

Lisa Marchesoni may be reached at 869-0814 or at lmarchesoni@murfreesboropost.com.