A-TEC was called on by FEMA to aide in the preparations and recovery from Hurricane Gustav.  A-TEC sent three Advance Life Support Ambulances and one Basic Life Support Ambulance to aide in the preparation and recovery stages of this storm.  Once A-TEC arrived in the Gulf Coast area, FEMA put a qualified A-TEC employee was put in charge of a strike team of ambulances and each assignment was carried out under the Strike Team Leaders command. While this strike team was led by A-TEC, they accomplished many assignments prior the storm.  Here are a few:

• Provided transportation for medical evacuees from Baton Rouge Airport to the local medical staging unit.

• Evacuation of an entire hospital in Southern Louisiana.

• Evacuation of two nursing homes in Southern Louisiana.

• Interfacility transportation from small regional hospitals to major trauma centers.

• Provided medical personnel and transportation services for skilled patient shelters.

• Provided medical personnel and transportation services for evacuated portable communities.

• Provided medical personnel and assisted in the evacuation of flooded coastal communities.

Hurricane Gustav made land fall on September 1, 2008, near Cocodrie, Louisiana as a Category 2 Hurricane.  Within days Hurricane Gustav was downgraded to a tropical storm, before it had claimed roughly 153 deaths and causing nearly $4.3 billion of damage on American soil alone.

While still aiding in the recovery efforts from Hurricane Gustav, A-TEC remained in the gulf coast area to assist with the preparations for a new oncoming storm that we now know as Hurricane Ike. Hurricane Ike was the ninth storm of that season and was the fifth to make it to a hurricane status.  

Once A-TEC had accepted the request to stay assist with Hurricane Ike, we were put them to work and kept working for a total of 18 days straight functioning in two different states.  Here is a small list of those special assignments that A-TEC took on:

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• Provided assistance to Galveston, Texas.
• Water operations of search and rescue

During this hurricane, A-TEC supplied a total of 482 working ambulance hours that were used all along the gulf coast.  After all was said and done, Hurricane Ike caused more than $29.6 billion in damage to American soil alone making Hurricane Ike the third most expensive hurricane to date.  Hurricane Ike also was responsible for creating the largest search and rescue operation in America’s history.