Alabama Medical Team Called to N.C. as Hurricane Isabel Moves Ashore

The Alabama-1 Disaster Medical Assistance Team (AL-1 DMAT) has been activated in response to an anticipated need for medical support following Hurricane Isabel, expected to move ashore later today. Six members of the team’s logistics unit and two trailer trucks of equipment, including a field hospital and supplies, are on-site in Fayetteville, N.C., and 29 additional medical and administrative team members are on stand-by to leave this afternoon.

September 18, 2003

BIRMINGHAM, AL — The Alabama-1 Disaster Medical Assistance Team (AL-1 DMAT) has been activated in response to an anticipated need for medical support following Hurricane Isabel, expected to move ashore later today. Six members of the team’s logistics unit and two trailer trucks of equipment, including a field hospital and supplies, are on-site in Fayetteville, N.C., and 29 additional medical and administrative team members are on stand-by to leave this afternoon.

AL-1 DMAT, a level-one trauma response team, is sponsored by UAB’s Center for Disaster Preparedness and the Birmingham VA Medical Center. The team is part of the National Disaster Medical System, operating under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The following team members have deployed and are volunteering their time and service with the support of their employers:

  • Jamie Blair, Huntsville, Alabama — team leader/emergency medical technician (EMT)

  • R.T. Bardenwerper, Birmingham, Alabama — logistics/dentist

  • Ronnie Banes, Birmingham, Alabama — registered nurse/EMT

  • Robert Buelow, Athens, Alabama — communications/EMT

  • Cathey Ferguson, Clanton, Alabama — administrative assistant/EMT

  • David Nash, Birmingham, Alabama — logistics/psychologist