Ten members of the Owensboro Fire Department’s Technical Rescue Team were deployed early Friday morning to assist with search and rescue efforts in London, Kentucky, following a devastating tornado outbreak that swept through the state overnight.
OFD personnel were activated by a mutual aid request from Kentucky Emergency Management. The team joined rescue crews from Louisville, Covington, and Paducah to perform secondary searches near the London-Corbin Airport, ultimately combing through dozens of damaged homes.
Battalion Chief Corey Gant, who oversees OFD’s Special Operations, said he received the call around 1 a.m. Friday.
“I got the call about 1 a.m. from the guy who runs the ESF-9 desk with Kentucky Emergency Management, which is their search and rescue division,” Gant said. “He told me a tornado had hit London and Somerset and that they were sending everybody.”
OFD has 30 personnel on its Special Operations team. Gant quickly began organizing a deployment group, and by 3:30 a.m., they were on the road. The team arrived in London around 9 a.m. and were paired with other regional teams to conduct detailed secondary searches.
“When we pulled into town, it didn’t look that bad,” Gant said. “But then we passed a neighborhood near the airport that was just obliterated. That’s the thing with tornadoes — you’ll see two houses untouched and a third one just gone.”
The team’s primary assignment was to perform secondary searches, a detailed sweep following the initial hasty and primary searches done by crews earlier in the day. These operations ensure that no one is missed in the aftermath of the storm.
Friday’s mission marked the third tornado deployment for OFD in recent years. The department responded to Mayfield’s candle factory collapse, sent personnel to assist in Bowling Green, and participated in rescue efforts in Dawson Springs following previous storms.
Gant credited state legislation passed in 2024 for improving Kentucky’s disaster response structure. The bill led to the development of Kentucky Task Force One, a statewide urban search and rescue (USAR) team. Until that system is fully operational, the state has leaned on local special operations teams like OFD’s to coordinate response efforts.
“Our team is made up of people trained in all aspects of technical rescue,” Gant said. “These are low-frequency, high-skill operations, and our guys are always ready to go.”
OFD’s specialized capabilities have made them a critical asset in mutual aid situations throughout the region. The department has responded to rescue calls in Hopkinsville, Madisonville, Henderson, and even during last summer’s search for two lost canoeists.
“We do this because we want to help our neighbors,” Gant said. “But there will come a day when we’ll need help too. That’s why building these relationships across the state matters.”
While the technical operations are essential, Gant said it’s often the human stories that stick with his team the most.
“One mom told us she was in the basement holding her kids, on the phone with her mother, who was working a shift at the hospital, when the tornado hit,” Gant said. “It ripped the second floor off the house and took all the outer walls — but they survived.”
He praised the department’s members for their professionalism and the City of Owensboro for its continued investment in specialized training and equipment.
“We’re just grateful to be able to help,” Gant said. “We hope we never need these skills here at home, but if we do, we’ll be ready — and so will the friends we’ve helped along the way.”
