Last Updated: 13 October 2004
Hurricane Frances over Florida and Hurricane Ivan near the Lesser Antilles
Photo courtesy of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Western North Carolina was thrown a one-two punch in the midst of the 2004 hurricane season when Frances and Ivan rolled through within a week of each other. The torrential rains on already-saturated grounds caused massive flooding, mudslides, and other damage.
Six of our members were deployed as part of NC Task Force 4 (NCTF-4) to assist with rescue and recovery efforts for both events. Chief Haraway, Scooter Carter, Issachar Modert, Bob Wall, Mike Beasley and Roy Moore first headed out to the mountains in the wee hours of Wednesday morning, 9/8. They received the deployment order around 1:30am, and were on the road shortly after. The team was housed at a senior citizen's community center in Mitchell County, and were in operation until relieved of duty on Friday 9/10.
The team only got a few days' rest before they were called out again the next Thursday, 9/16, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan. This time they were housed at the Walnut Community Volunteer Fire Department in Madison County. They assisted in several rescues during their three-day deployment, and returned home on Saturday 9/18.
Click the thumbnails to view a larger photo in a separate browser window.
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Copyright 2004 Apex Fire Department