“In a time when it felt like we had lost everything, The Health Wagon gave us something back: hope. I will never forget what they did for our community.”- Sheilah, Damascus, Va. Flood Survivor
(Wise, Va.) – When Hurricane Helene ravaged much of the Southeast including the town of Damascus, Va. September 27, 2024, many of the people of Damascus and Haysi were left stranded, without power with their roads washed away. The Health Wagon’s Dr. Teresa Tyson DNP, and Dr. Paula Hill Collins, DNP, and their team, joined volunteer physicians Dr. Mark Handy and Dr. Joe Smiddy, immediately jumping in to provide much needed medical assistance.
The Health Wagon swiftly responded to those hardest-hit areas. Equipped with the latest satellite technology, the medical professionals overcame immediate storm-related communication barriers to provide essential care.
“Our dedicated healthcare team conducted door to-door visits in flood-ravaged neighborhoods, providing crucial medical care including pulmonary tests, chest X-rays, and
vaccinations such as tetanus, hepatitis A, flu, and COVID-19,” said Dr. Tyson, DNP. “The Health Wagon coordinated with others to provide lost eyeglasses, worked with pharmacies to replace lost medications and delivered oxygen tanks to those stranded by washed-out roads.”
Tyson said she so appreciated Dr. Ben Carey and his psychiatric team from Norfolk, Va. who offered mental health services and coping strategies to residents, including those with pre-existing PTSD, who were deeply distressed by the flood’s trauma. Beyond medical care, the Health Wagon distributed emergency supplies like food, antibacterial spray, blankets, clothing, and toiletries to assist in recovery and maintain hygiene.
One Damascus flood survivor named Sheilah, described that time like this:
“When the floodwaters came, they took everything. My home, my belongings—gone in an instant. I didn’t know where to start, how to begin again. The devastation in our county was overwhelming, and for days, it felt like no help was coming. But then, The Health Wagon showed up and had donations and told us these supplies were from UBCF (United Breast Cancer Foundation) I began to cry. I had lost family to breast cancer and here I was getting supplies from UBCF … it was a gift from angels.”
Local People Who Understood:
“They didn’t just drop supplies at a distribution center and leave,” Sheilah continued. “They went door to door, walking through the mud, knocking on doors or going to some of us in tents making sure we were okay. When I looked up out of my open tent and saw them standing there with cleaning supplies, food, and even just a warm smile, I can’t tell you how much that meant. They weren’t strangers from some big organization, they didn’t look down on us but were truly genuine. They were local, people who understood what we were going through and cared enough to come right to us for weeks after the event.”
A Listening Ear:
“They asked what we needed, listened to our stories, and didn’t leave until they had done everything they could to help. I remember standing in my doorway, holding a box of supplies, and just feeling this huge sense of relief. It wasn’t just about the things they gave us—it was the kindness, the reassurance that we weren’t forgotten,” Sheilah said. “In a time when it felt like we had lost everything, The Health Wagon gave us something back: hope. I will never forget what they did for our community.”
Health Wagon relief efforts were made possible thanks to the generosity of partners like CVS Pharmacy, Ballard Urgent Care, United Breast Cancer Foundation, Southern Baptist
Convention Disaster Relief, Dr. Smiddy, Mennonite Women’s Ministry, local churches, and many more who stepped up to help. Together, these organizations worked to address the full scope of recovery needs, ensuring comprehensive care for the residents of Damascus.
About the Health Wagon: The Health Wagon is a nonprofit organization providing comprehensive, compassionate healthcare to the medically underserved in the mountains of Appalachia since 1980. From mobile medical units to stationary clinics, dental, pharmacy, and veterinary services, the Health Wagon is committed to breaking barriers and building healthier futures across Appalachia. Guided by a One Health approach and our proprietary Integrated Comprehensive Care Collective (ICCC) model, we deliver care that recognizes the interconnected health of people, animals, and the environment while transforming access for underserved communities. Together with our wonderful partners, we move mountains.
The Health Wagon is a nurse practitioner managed clinic that has been in existence
since 1980 which provides free medical, dental and vision health care services in Lee, Scott, Wise, Dickenson, Buchanan, Washington and Russell Counties and Norton City. For more information about The Health Wagon, please call 276-328-8850 or visit www.thehealthwagon.org. If you would like to donate to the
Health Wagon, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, please visit: www.thehealthwagon.org/donate.
Photo:
Dr. Ben Carey worked with the Health Wagon to provide both medical and counseling services to people who had lost everything in the flood. Courtesy: Ivy Sheppard, Emory & Henry.
One year later: The Health Wagon reflects on Hurricane Helene flooding