Copyright 2006 The Times-Picayune Publishing Company
By SHEILA SULLIVAN
Times-Picayune (New Orleans)
They always have been our heroes, and the members of the Terrytown Fifth District Volunteer Fire Department were magnificent during Hurricane Katrina.
In looking back over 2005, Deputy Chief and Public Information Officer Robert Masson says the first part of the year was “fairly normal.” July 1 brought the retirement of Gerald Dellucky after 27½ years as fire chief. The Board of Directors appointed Bryan Adams as the new chief. His first appointments in taking over operation of the department were his two deputy chiefs: Glen Faust, longtime deputy chief in charge of operations as a reappointment and Masson as new deputy chief in charge of administration.
There also were the appointments of Bruce Mills as assistant chief of Station 51, Robert Hamer as assistant chief of Station 52, Bobby Ricouard as assistant chief of Station 53, Mike Murphy as assistant chief of Station 54, Roy Heindel as assistant chief of fire prevention and Andy Hrivnak as assistant chief of training.
Masson says “everything changed dramatically” with Hurricane Katrina. No equipment was lost because most of it, along with that of other departments, was sent to Holden. Adams, along with 14 members and operators, left with other equipment the Sunday afternoon before Katrina hit for Lafayette, where they were the overnight guests of the Rev. Wayne Howington, pastor of Northwood United Methodist Church.
On the afternoon of Aug. 29 the group headed back, arriving in Terrytown at 11 p.m. Masson says it was “like going to another world. It was total blackness and the streets were filled with water. The total widespread devastation was inconceivable. Out of our four stations, the Heritage Avenue station was hit the hardest. It will take more than a million dollars to get it up and running.”
Masson said, “It’s difficult to explain the things that took place in Terrytown; you had to be there to see it firsthand.” The hurricane’s winds and the tornadoes that touched down sporadically in the community caused terrible destruction.
The department responded to widespread looting of Terry Parkway businesses, especially of the Walgreens pharmacy. The department, with the help of others, fought the blaze set at Oakwood Center for 48 hours before it was brought under control. A department member who works for Chauvin Bros. borrowed a forklift and firefighters cleared trees and debris from Terrytown streets. The department worked with the American Red Cross and Salvation Army to supply food and water to desperate residents of our community.
Masson said the first weeks post-Katrina were hellish. The two operators who manned the Heritage station during the storm had to evacuate to West Jefferson Hospital when the station was destroyed. For more than a month following the devastation, officers and operators lived at the Carol Sue station along with JPSO deputies, FEMA personnel, units of the National Guard and firefighters from across the country who had come to help. Local personnel would leave for short periods to take care of the damages to their own homes.
The department bought a trailer to place at the Heritage station so it could function. Operators live there 24/7.
Chief Adams said the department is up and running and dealing with any kind of emergency. He thanks the members and operators for their support during Katrina and in the busy time since. He wants the residents of Terrytown and the Fifth District to know that the department is standing strong and committed to doing its part in rebuilding the community. The department will be taking a very active role in all civic organizations in the community and plans to be an intrinsic part of a successful rebuilding.
Adams also said he will launch an aggressive membership drive to recruit members displaced by the storm.
We wish our Terrytown firefighters all the blessings of the new year.