The Health Wagon Provides Care to Isolated Storm Survivors

On September 26, 2024, Hurricane Helene made landfall along the gulf coast of Florida as a Category 4 tropical storm. The effects were felt along much of the southeast United States, including the southern Appalachia region, which was devastated by widespread flooding and damaging winds that left many rural residents isolated and cut off from medical care.

In the wake of the storm, the Health Wagon, a nonprofit that provides health care to medically underserved people in the mountains of Appalachia, quickly sprang into action. The dedicated staff of the Health Wagon traveled door to door to deliver water, food and medical attention to those most in need.

“We hit the ground, not running, but hiking to get to survivors in areas like Damascus, VA, to administer aid and provide care and up-to-date shots to our patients who otherwise could not go anywhere, especially to the doctor,” said Sarah Gardner, community outreach coordinator for the Health Wagon.

The organization’s mobile vans, equipped with satellite technology, were deployed to the flood-affected areas in Virginia, and residents were able to use the Health Wagon’s connection to get in contact with their loved ones. The nonprofit worked alongside other local organizations and businesses, coordinating the distribution of aid to the surrounding populations. They provided mental health services and trauma support and partnered with churches and faith leaders to help people cope with the emotional toll of the storm’s devastation.

“Faith leaders and our mobile team were by far the most effective messengers,” Gardner said. “They brought heart and care to those who were often left with literally nothing after this year's storms.”

Providing care wherever it is needed is at the heart of the Health Wagon’s mission and history. The organization was started over four decades ago by Sister Bernadette Kenny, a medical missionary and registered family nurse practitioner, who traveled throughout the Appalachia region to provide free medical care from the back of her donated Volkswagen Beetle. Sister Kenny passed away on December 7, 2024, at the age of 85, but the Health Wagon’s critical work continues. Today they offer wide ranging care through health centers and mobile health units that serve people throughout Southwest Virginia. Since 2021, the CDC Foundation has supported Health Wagon in their efforts to provide community members with essential health information and educational materials.

As part of their Hurricane Helene response, the Health Wagon offered residents access to both emergency and primary health care services such as pulmonary function tests and free chest X-rays. They coordinated healthcare and pharmacy services for those who lost medications and assisted with eyeglasses and oxygen support.

“It really opened people up to the idea of getting all forms of care in one sitting that they may not be able to get for several weeks or months otherwise,” Gardner said.

In conjunction with their mobile health clinics, the Health Wagon also organized community drives to provide things like free Halloween costumes, veterinary services, Thanksgiving dinners and Christmas toys.

The Health Wagon will continue to support the health and well-being of these hard-hit communities as they work to recover from the devastation of Helene.

“We are truly proud of the resilience of our region,” Gardner said.

This project is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $508,838 with 100 percent funded by CDC/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, CDC/HHS or the U.S. Government, or the CDC Foundation.