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A tribute to our rescue squads |
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March 29, 2008 |
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This morning I had the NRV scanner channel on, listening for word on the manhunt in Giles County. Naturally the scanner was broadcasting more than just that one event, so I could hear bursts from Pulaski, Montgomery, and Floyd counties. That's how I came to be listening when the call came through about a pickup truck down an embankment in Belspring.
That got my attention because my grandparents are buried in the cemetery just a hundred yards from the accident site. I know the area well, and have family near there. The driver was trapped inside the vehicle and apparently had been there for hours, probably not readily visible to passing traffic. I listened as they worked to free the driver and get him to the waiting helicopter so he could get to the hospital for medical attention. Hearing the exchanges of the rescue workers made me so proud of these men and women, and the job they do. Their professionalism under stress, the calm way they go about doing what needs to be done to save a life, it's just amazing. And most of them are volunteers, which makes what they do even more noteworthy. They give their time and energy to help someone in distress, quite often complete strangers. Sometimes the person is so ill or injured they little know who's helping them. These emergency workers really embody something that's the core of our community, another beautiful element to the New River Valley.
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