White County volunteers step up to help storm-stricken neighbors

The winter storm that blew through middle Tennessee last week didn’t have nearly the effect on White County as many predicted, but that didn’t mean neighboring counties didn’t see devastation. White County’s emergency departments were activated as requests for mutual aid came in from counties who found themselves buried under snow and ice.  

On Tuesday, January 27, members of Central View and Doyle Volunteer Fire Departments sent four personnel along with one community team to Perry County and another six-personnel community team to Macon County. Teams worked for ten hours to remove debris and open roads that were previously closed due to damage from the ice storm. In addition, the White County teams helped provide house checks to ensure residents were not in need of assistance.  

On Wednesday, January 28, Cassville and North End Fire Departments joined Central View and Doyle in sending more personnel, along with an eight-person community team, to Macon Trousdale. The teams took a skid steer and chain saws to assist in clearing the way for utility companies to get to areas that were without power.  

White County’s response, which resulted in ten-plus hours of aid each day, was in response to a statewide request from the Tennessee Emergency Management Association. 

“We just had normal winter precipitation operations here at home,” White County EMA director Matt McBride explained that while precautions were in place for the storm that had been predicted, the lack of severity didn’t warrant any extreme measures. “That put us in a position to be able to send assistance to counties who were hit much harder than we were.”