ASHLAND CITY, Tenn. (WTVF) — Edwin Hogan has seen it all in his 33 years as Cheatham County's emergency management director, but two ice storms stand out above the rest.
The latest ice storm that battered Middle Tennessee brought back vivid memories of 1994 for Hogan, who was just 27 years old and only four months into his role when that historic storm hit.
"We didn't have a light on in this county for three whole days," Hogan said, recalling the 1994 ice storm. "'94 was worse because every yard looked like a war zone in this county."
Three decades later, Hogan found himself leading the county's response to another significant ice storm.
"In '94, we had to hook bulldozers to line trucks to pull them through fields to get power back up," he said. "So some of those things have improved."
Hogan still keeps documentation from the 1994 storm, including photos and paperwork submitted to FEMA.
Despite technological advances, Hogan emphasized that community volunteers remain the backbone of effective storm response.
"So many volunteers helping, there's just no way our agency or all the emergency services in our county could've gotten to everybody without the help of groups and citizens," Hogan said.
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