YORKTOWN, Va. — Years of traveling have added up to years of memories for Jason Patch, even though his travels aren't exactly for vacation.
"Was working bout 12 to 13 hour days, working into the night," Patch said.
Patch, a deputy with the York-Poquoson Sheriff's Office, returned to Virginia Friday after spending several days cleaning up the Florida Gulf Coast from the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia.
It's a tradition spanning roughly 20 years for Patch, whose mission to single-handedly make a difference in impacted communities has brought him to Louisiana, Florida, North Carolina, West Virginia and beyond.
"Everybody is shocked when I'm down there. They'll ask, ‘What task force are you on’ and I'm like 'It’s just me,'" Patch said.
York-Poquoson County Sheriff Ron Montgomery told 13News Now Patch has been doing this civic duty for years, and that he often gets messages of thanks from the local law enforcement agencies following his assistance in those respective regions.
Locally, Patch also responded to the April tornado in the Great Neck area of Virginia Beach.
Idalia is Patch's fifth "I" storm he's covered, and while employed by the YPSO, he travels to each natural disaster area in his free time and on his own dime.
“A lot of places do not have their own chainsaws, this equipment, so I just show up out of the blue," he said.
For Idalia, downed trees along the roadways were the area's biggest damage. Patch told 13News Now his response to cleaning up the storm debris allowed emergency responder personnel to divert attention and resources elsewhere across the affected areas.
"Everybody is very thankful, especially when you just show up. If I see somebody’s driveway blocked I'll go and clear it so they can get out," he said.
When asked, Patch has no thoughts of stopping or slowing down for future storms.