07/12/2026
This past weekend tested our communities in ways few could have imagined.
At approximately 3:00 a.m. on Friday, July 10, the Pilot K**b Fire Protection District received our first request for assistance from Reynolds County for multiple swiftwater rescues. Within minutes, we deployed six Swiftwater Rescue Technicians, several support personnel, and our rescue boat to assist our neighboring communities.
Our crews split into two teams—one responding south toward Annapolis and eastern Reynolds County, while the other deployed west toward Viburnum and northern Reynolds County. Throughout the morning, our members worked alongside numerous mutual aid agencies, completing multiple successful water rescues and helping bring stranded residents to safety.
As the scope of the disaster became clear, additional resources were needed. The Missouri Statewide Mutual Aid System was activated, bringing responders from Missouri Regions C and E, followed by the deployment of Missouri Task Force 1. A Unified Command was established at Arcadia Valley High School, where members of our command staff served as part of the Unified Command Team, helping coordinate one of the largest emergency responses our area has experienced.
Once our initial rescue assignments were complete, our personnel were reorganized into strike teams and continued responding to rescue missions throughout Iron and Reynolds counties alongside agencies from across the state.
Friday evening brought another significant mission when approximately 200 children and adults were evacuated by helicopter from Camp Taum Sauk to Arcadia Valley Elementary School. Our members joined personnel from Washington County Ambulance District, St. Francois County Ambulance District, Arcadia Valley school staff, and volunteers from AV Chapel, United Cajun Navy, the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and many others to prepare for their arrival. Together, we ensured every evacuee was safe, received food, dry clothing, shelter, and any necessary medical evaluation.
Throughout the remainder of the weekend, our members continued assisting within the Unified Command structure while responding to additional rescue and recovery missions across the region. Our final assignments concluded this morning, and we are incredibly thankful to report that all of our personnel returned home safely and without injury.
We would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to every fire department, ambulance service, law enforcement agency, emergency management agency, state and federal partner, volunteer organization, local business, and individual who stepped up during this disaster. Your willingness to serve your neighbors demonstrated the very best of our communities.
Thank you to the families of our volunteer firefighters and rescuers for supporting them while they answered the call, often for days at a time. Your sacrifices do not go unnoticed.
Most importantly, thank you to our volunteer members. When your community needed you most, you answered the call. You responded with professionalism, compassion, and the training necessary to perform these difficult missions safely.
We also want to recognize the William J. Edgar Foundation, whose generous grant awarded just a few months ago provided our department with the training and equipment needed to respond to emergencies like this. Because of that investment, our members were prepared when our communities needed them most.
While this response has come to an end, many families continue facing the difficult task of rebuilding after this catastrophic flooding. We ask everyone to keep those affected in your thoughts and prayers in the days and weeks ahead.
We are proud to serve our community, and we are honored to stand alongside so many dedicated responders and volunteers who proved once again that, when disaster strikes, Missouri comes together.
Pilot K**b Fire Protection District
"Neighbors Helping Neighbors."
