Dobbins medical team returns from Haiti relief mission

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. James Branch
  • 94th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOBBINS AIR RESERVE BASE, Ga. (AFNS) --  Five members of the 94th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron here returned home Jan. 31 after a two-week Operation Unified Response deployment to provide medical care and support for Haitians injured in the devastating earthquake.

While unloading their medical equipment, Lt. Col. David Rodberg, the medical crew director, and Capt. Jeff Wilson, Master Sgt. Shane Grizzle, Tech. Sgt. Alycia Jackson and Tech. Sgt. Jason Wade, all medical technicians, spoke on the condition of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince.

"The conditions were devastating," said Colonel Rodberg of the island nation devastated by a Jan. 12 7.0 earthquake. "The damage was far worse than I expected."

The crew reminisced of children crying, confused and in need of medical attention, Haitians with amputated limbs, concussions and burns. Striving to care for as many patients as possible, the crew ran flights around the clock from Haiti to hospitals and trauma centers in the United States, providing treatment to patients 30,000 feet in C-130 Hercules aircraft.

"You never know what to expect on missions like these," Sergeant Wade said. "It's hard not to get emotional. We just did what we've been trained to do to the best of our ability."

"I honestly think that if we didn't respond in the timely manner in which we did, a lot of people wouldn't have survived," Colonel Rodberg said.

Despite the devastation of Haiti and the nature of the mission, the Dobbins Air Reserve Base medics felt privileged to be a part of it.

"The Air Force has programs in place to help us cope with missions such as these," Sergeant Wade said. "We don't just work; we serve."