After almost two weeks working around-the-clock in hurricane-besieged Louisiana, New Athens firefighter Doug Birkner couldn't be blamed if he wanted some time to rest.
He got some -- a few hours worth, at least. Birkner returned home on the morning of Sept. 18. By that evening, he was out responding to a local ambulance call, and the next day, it was a fire call out in the country.
Physically and emotionally wiped, Birkner said, "I wish we could have done more, but I don't know what more we could have done."
Birkner, 32, has four years experience with the volunteer New Athens Fire Department, and also served a stint with a small department in Kentucky. But nothing -- not even his job as an emergency room technician at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Belleville -- could have prepared him for the despair in Louisiana.
Birkner, along with 13 other firefighters in the local Mutual Aid Box Alarm System division, served in Hurricane Katrina relief efforts from Sept. 5-18. After a couple of antsy days in Baton Rouge, La., waiting for assignments, Birkner's crew worked two different Louisiana towns -- the first in St. Rose, then Harvey.
Though both places were devastated, Harvey, located just south of the Mississippi River from New Orleans, was the most intense of the two assignments. The industrial suburb had numerous structure fires, especially when people attempted to restore power as the week unfolded.
Birkner said the group handled more fires in the two weeks in Louisiana than the New Athens department would see "in more than a year."
Birkner, a trained EMT, also handed a few medical calls, including for one man who was hit over the head by a fallen tree branch.
Creature comforts definitely weren't a priority.
The streets of both towns reeked. Many residents dumped their garbage and refrigerators into the streets for lack of better alternatives.
The firefighters slept on cots they brought along for the trip, but rest was a rarity. During the daytime, they handed out Red Cross supplies to residents, and their night-time sleep was frequently interrupted by calls for service.
A Louisiana State University fire college instructor guided the firefighters around the unknown territory.
Being away from his family -- wife Stephanie, sons Chris, Dylan, Cody, Adrian and daughter Katelyn -- was a difficult mental burden. His wife felt the angst particularly sharply.
Stephanie Birkner said she was rattled until a conversation with one of the other firefighter's wives a few days into the trip.
"She explained to me the other firefighters he was with had a lot of experience, he was in good hands and I didn't need to worry about it," Stephanie Birkner said. "I was fine after that."
Despite the strains of the trip, there were a few light moments.
Birkner made numerous new friends in the Louisiana departments, some of whom are considering spending the coming Mardi Gras in St. Louis with their new Northern buddies. In Harvey, local firefighters staged a contest to see which crew could make the best food for the visitors. ("Probably the jambalaya," Birkner said.)
Throughout the two weeks, Birkner said he encountered "a lot of upset people," but none of the violence or looting documented in other places. Overwhelmingly, residents were grateful for the help.
"A lot of them said if anything ever happened up here, they'd be up here to help us," Birkner said.
Naturally, the group was delighted at the prospect of returning home. But even that became an ordeal.
One of the vehicles in the convoy broke down along Interstate 10 in Louisiana, and it took about three hours before help arrived.
Birkner said he volunteered for the trip because he felt "helpless" when watching early reports of the hurricane coverage.
Fire Chief Dave Owens said Birkner is a reliable firefighter who is "there whenever he can be." New Athens firefighters Chris Hespen and Jeff Wahlig were on standby to be deployed.
"If it'd had been any of them, it wouldn't have surprised me," Owens said. "I'm sure I've got other guys who would have if they had a little better notice and been able to secure it with their employment."
As for Birkner's not-so-relaxing first few days back, Stephanie Birkner said it didn't surprise her.
"That's just him," she said. "He wants to help as much as he can."
Jay Schwab can be reached here by email.
Distributed by the Associated Press
