Watch: TN Army National Guard pilots speak about rescues during Helene

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — It's been almost a week since Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida and thrashed across the Southeast. First responders from local, state and federal agencies have been helping recover from the aftermath in East Tennessee.

Among them were Tennessee Army National Guardsmen stationed at McGhee Tyson Airport. When the storm caused flooding in Unicoi County, consuming the county hospital, they were some of the first to respond.

Dan Backus, an Alcoa native and chief warrant officer in the Tennessee National Guard, said he and the rest of the guardsmen were eager to join the rescue operations on Friday, though Helene posed challenging conditions.

"The winds were violent. There was a lot of turbulence. I've been telling the guys after we got done flying that day, I felt like I'd gotten beat up in a street fight or something," Backus said.