NORFOLK, Va. (WVEC) -- They saved the day six months ago when massive storms destroyed homes and changed lives forever.
More than 400 Virginia National Guard soldiers responded to the three major hurricanes last fall in the Atlantic, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico.
Among them: members of the Second 183rd Cavalry out of Portsmouth.
"There was no electricity, there were power lines down," said Capt. Daniel Tarrant. "The trees looked like wintertime, they were completely missing all their leaves. It was pretty devastated."
MSGT Rob Purkerson agreed. "It was a moonscape," he said. "It was like, 'Whoa, what are we getting into?' It was like a ghost town."
They are talking about St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. When Hurricane Maria made landfall, it was a Category 4 storm with 150-mile per hour winds. And that was after the island had already been hit by Hurricane Irma weeks earlier.
The Portsmouth-based teams primarily delivered needed supplies.
"The soldiers loved it," said Purkerson. "They walked away with a sense of accomplishment because they're helping somebody and they're really glad we're here to help them. And that was a really great thing to see and that part of it was really fulfilling."
They're now eligible for the Humanitarian Service Medal. Originally authorized in 1977, the medal honors service members who distinguish themselves by conducting hands-on humanitarian relief.
The Air Force announced last week that the Joint Staff had approved the medal for service members, Coast Guardsmen, reservists and National Guard members who were physically present on-site to respond to Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria.
"I think that's going to be well received by the soldiers in the unit," said Tarrant. "The Humanitarian Award, that's a pretty big deal for us."
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