In the wake of Hurricane Helene, Joe Seely emerged as a critical asset for HCA Healthcare, bringing both technical expertise and a spirit of resilience to the disaster response efforts. As a wireless architect with our Information Technology Group (ITG), Joe plays a pivotal role in shaping the standards and technologies that drive HCA Healthcare’s wireless infrastructure across the enterprise.

Joe began his career as an electrician before taking a leap into the tech world and founding a wireless internet service provider in rural Texas. After transitioning to HCA Healthcare in Tennessee in 2014, Joe has spent over a decade honing his skills and contributing to various projects that propel the organization forward. He views his role as a commitment to ensuring that healthcare facilities are equipped with the best possible technology – especially in times of urgent need.

“I help with whatever is needed during disasters,” he explained, emphasizing his dedication to supporting his colleagues and the communities they serve. When Hurricane Helene struck, Joe found himself thrust into the heart of the action. On Friday afternoon, as a historic combination of heavy rainfall, flooding and catastrophic landslides devastated Western North Carolina, Joe was alerted that Mission Health’s main systems were down.

Although he hadn’t anticipated being directly involved, he received an urgent request the next morning to travel to Asheville, and he immediately hit the ground running. Joe spent the remainder of the day analyzing what would be needed to get Mission’s facilities back online. He utilized supplies provided by HCA Healthcare’s corporate campuses, including mobile satellite kits – crucial for restoring temporary network connectivity during the crisis – that had been transported from Indiana.

Upon arriving in Asheville early Sunday morning, Joe was struck by the “very well-orchestrated chaos” of the Division Emergency Operations Center. Every moment counted, and he was quickly transported to Blue Ridge Regional Hospital, where he was met with a tearful welcome from a team who had been operating in complete darkness with no radio, cell service or connection to the outside world.

“They were living through the absolute worst time,” he recalled. “Yet, they were still there. They didn’t leave and run home. They didn’t abandon their post. They stayed there to take care of the people, to take care of the patients.”

Joe ultimately was able to get Blue Ridge back online later that evening, but with no vehicle, nowhere to stay, and helicopter teams unable to retrieve him until the next morning, he took up the offer of two mechanical engineers who generously drove him to his next destination in McDowell. With just an old paper map, the trio navigated through areas where all road signs and even stretches of road had been washed away. They ultimately made it to the facility, thanks to a law enforcement officer who stepped in to escort them. By the time he and the engineers had Mission Hospital McDowell reconnected to the internet, it was almost sunrise on Monday morning, meaning Joe hadn’t caught a moment of sleep since Saturday night. After a 35-minute nap, he was notified that a helicopter was on its way to take him to Transylvania Regional Hospital.

He was again struck by the ways in which his colleagues across the organization came together to care for their patients and each other, stepping up to help in any way they could. Joe eventually returned to the division office in Asheville and was about to collapse onto a mattress in a hallway-turned-bunkroom after days of non-stop work, when a group of nurses urgently needed help contacting their families and getting access to essential information. Despite his exhaustion, Joe quickly set up his laptop and worked to restore a guest Wi-Fi network.

He still didn’t stop there, continuing to work through the night to remotely restore connections for 53 clinics in the area, ensuring they’d be able to operate as normal when colleagues arrived the following morning. Only after everything was running smoothly did he finally get a moment to sleep, knowing his efforts had kept critical healthcare operations going despite the turmoil. Even after the crisis had passed, Joe knew his work wasn’t finished.

“I went to my whiteboard, and I started drawing,” Joe said, reflecting on how he immediately began planning a new network solution that would better support communication during disasters. He knew that the lessons learned in the field had to translate into a stronger, more resilient infrastructure. For Joe, this experience wasn’t just about fixing problems in the moment.

It became about building a system that would keep all our hospitals connected, no matter the crisis.