It was 10 a.m. on Aug. 29 when Jon Cooke received a phone call. He was informed that his EMT unit would be one of many from Louisville requested for service in New Orleans.

Cooke, a cousin of Trinity senior Nick Zeitz, was just a regular guy. He graduated from St. Xavier and dropped out of U of L to become a fireman at age 19. He became an emergency medical technician at age 26. He lives in a suburban home in J-town with his wife and their cats. He’s an avid outdoorsman with a jovial demeanor.

After receiving the call, Cooke had only three or four hours to get ready and begin the long trip south. His unit drove through the hurricane all night until they arrived in Meridian, Miss.

Cooke recalled, “Once we passed Montgomery, it was pitch black, no electricity and no fuel.” His caravan included six vehicles, four of which, unfortunately, were diesel-fueled trucks. While in Meridian, they had to syphon diesel from abandoned dump trucks and heavy machinery. After driving through the morning, they reached New Orleans at noon. “There was so little time to reflect,” Cooke said. “All that was in our heads was to get the job done best we could.”

During one of their first rescue missions, the unit stumbled upon another team helping elderly people out of an apartment building. They helped place the scared men and women into canoes and float them to an evacuation point. During that moment Cooke overheard someone calling his name.

A man he had just helped out of the building had collapsed and was in cardiac arrest. Unfortunately, his team wasn’t equipped with the proper medical supplies. The man died as the rescue team was left dumbfounded.

“Usually, I just take people to the hospital and once they enter the doors I don’t hear from them again,” Cooke said. “It was just an unfamiliar situation for me and we didn’t know what to do.”

They ended up covering the man’s face and leaving him on the side of the road. After a few short prayers, the unit headed on to help anyone they could find.

Later during his tour of service, Cooke and his team rescued four New Orleans firefighters.

They were distraught and worn down from wandering aimlessly. They had been mugged at gun point for their shoes and coats.

Cooke said that they explained to him that “everything had been fine after the initial hit from the hurricane. People had been out in the streets laughing and playing music; however, when the levee broke, all hell broke loose.”

The most tragic moment for Cooke came when he was confronted by a man walking through the street. The man was holding a black garbage bag, not even half full. He looked at Cooke and asked if he had a safe place he could store the garbage bag. Cooke told him he could put it in the truck, but that was best he could do.

The man said that that wouldn’t be good enough, and asked Cooke if he was sure he didn’t have a safe place. Cooke was curious and asked what was in the bag.

The man looked back and said, “My whole life.”

Upon returning to Louisville, Cooke recalls watching the footage and coverage on TV.

“Everything shown on TV was true,” he said. “The Superdome was hell on earth; there was insane looting, mugging, rape and even sniper fire. It was shocking to see a thriving metropolis turn into animalistic behavior.”

The only thing shown on TV that Cooke feels wasn’t present was racism. When asked if he thought FEMA dragged their feet to help, he simply laughed and said, “That could be a whole other article.”

He explained that communication, outside his own team, was horrible. Cooke said that once the federal government did get involved, the process became much simpler; however, it also became more frightening. As an EMT, Cooke and his unit didn't carry guns. He said, “We never expected that the people in need would be unhappy to see us.”

As he discussed this tragic, frightening and unusual experience in his life, Cooke always kept a smile on his face. Making little jokes as he went a long, he showed hints of pride, appreciation and hope.

“For those people’s sake, I hope they can rebuild New Orleans,” he said. “And hope is really all we have left.