Pasco First Responders Reflect on Hurricane Milton and Helene Efforts

Hurricane Response and Teamwork

• 💡 Hurricane Milton impacted nearly 600,000 customers in the Tampa Bay area, with over 1 million outages reported.
• 🚒 Pasco Fire Rescue Captain Andrew Breuer worked 14 days straight, 12 hours on and 12 hours off, describing the experience as "very draining" but learning about team strength.
• 🌊 One notable rescue involved saving a woman clinging to a stop sign amidst severe flooding.

Dual Hurricane Impact

• 🌪️ While Hurricane Helene brought unprecedented flooding to Pasco County's west side, Hurricane Milton followed less than two weeks later, causing wind damage and further water inundation across the county.
• 🏠 Linemen like Kevin Vaughn, with 28 years at Luchi Electric, faced the challenge of restoring power to others while their own homes were without electricity for extended periods.

Dedication and Resilience

• 🛠️ Linemen, including Theo Gomez, had to navigate floodwaters to perform their duties, noting the unique challenge of responding to disasters in their own community.
• 💪 The culture among first responders emphasizes working until the job is done, demonstrating grit and dedication.
• 🗓️ Both Fire Station 37 and the power company learned valuable lessons from these storms and hope for a quieter hurricane season ahead.