LV counselor details trying work in D.C.

Angela Soo

Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2001 | 9:52 a.m.

Time seemed to both pass quickly and drag on for Evelyn Halstead during the past two weeks.

Halstead, a Red Cross Services Human Resources volunteer, went to Washington the Sunday following attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center to offer counseling to rescue workers at the Pentagon. She returned Saturday.

"The two weeks felt like one whole day, and at the same time, it also felt like years," said Halstead, the only Southern Nevada mental health professional who went to the Pentagon.

Halstead spoke at a press conference Monday about her experience and told reporters of the graphic conversations she had with rescue workers. One informal counseling session involved a police officer who was one of the first to arrive on scene.

"This officer was up to his waist in jet fuel and water," Halstead said. "He remembered walking through floating bodies and body parts. He was helping people out who were on fire."

Another rescue worker pulled out the dead body of a girl from the airplane wreckage. The girl was still holding onto her doll.

"The rescue worker had a real tough time dealing with the little girl he found, because he has a daughter about the same age," Halstead said. "If they stop to think about what they're doing, they start to fall apart. My job is to keep the workers focused."

There were several times when Halstead herself felt like falling apart, she said. Knowing that it was crucial to take care of her own mental health before trying to help others, she telephoned her husband for support or talked with the other 30 to 40 mental health professionals who were there.

"I called my husband one day sobbing," Halstead said. "He was at the cleaners and asked me if he could call me back. It helped me to know that he was doing something as simple as going to the cleaners. It normalized everything."

The mental health workers were available around the clock. They worked six-hour shifts that actually lasted 10 hours, including briefing and debriefing sessions. Halstead worked a 6 p.m. to midnight shift and usually returned to her room at 3 a.m., she said.

Red Cross volunteers also passed out $100 phone cards donated by AT&T. Stuffed animals were donated to the crew through the Red Cross.

One of Halstead's colleagues, Kathy Risdon, is doing the same work in New York City and plans to return Wednesday. A third volunteer, Jerry Meardy, a mass care coordinator, is scheduled to fly back Friday from New York. Caroline Johnson, a computer operations volunteer, left Saturday for the Washington area.

A $500,000 check was presented to the Red Cross Liberty Disaster Relief Fund by Anchor Gaming during the press conference. The Southern Nevada chapter raised $4 million so far for relief efforts that will go toward opening shelters, serving meals, providing mental health contacts and other support services in the disaster areas.

Halstead was in tears when she thought of the people who would benefit from the donation.

"That just makes me cry, because I know where that money is going to."