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HOPKINSVILLE, Ky. – A U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal platoon leader used a kayak to deliver groceries to one of his Soldiers and his family after they were stranded in their house by flooding in Hopkinsville, Kentucky.
Staff Sgt. Brian A. Quinlan, the platoon sergeant from the Fort Campbell, Kentucky-based 2nd Platoon, 49th Ordnance Company (EOD), came to the aid of his Soldier and his family.
“The Soldier let us know that many houses on his street had been flooded, and the water covering one portion of the sole access road to his house was too deep to pass by car. His house itself was in good shape, as it sits on the highest elevation point in his neighborhood and none of the flood water had gotten in,” said Quinlan.
The Soldier reached out again later and told Quinlan that the lone road to his house was still covered with water that was five feet deep in one section. Since the neighborhood was surrounded by low farmland, the street had become a large flood lake.
A city official came by on a boat and let the Soldier know they anticipated it would be several days before that road was passable, said Quinlan, adding that pumps are now in place there.
“The Soldier called me and said that they were close to running out of a few essentials and he needed to start looking into solutions,” said Quinlan.
“The flood water there is largely stagnant and disgusting with trash and sewage,” said Quinlan. “Wading and swimming or spending any real length of time in contact with the water was out of the question. I asked him to send me a list of everything he needed, and I told him I would figure it out.”
Quinlan borrowed a fishing kayak and left work with his platoon leader, 1st Lt. Sean P. Barrett, who went to the commissary for groceries.
“We were looking for a good place to launch when a Soldier who lived nearby pulled up in her Jeep. She said she lived one street over and could just barely get through the flooding there, but she hadn’t tried my guy’s street, where the corner was very deep,” said Quinlan.
“We tossed the groceries in her Jeep, and we tried it, but halfway into the corner it was clear it was going to be too deep for her vehicle,” said Quinlan. “We backed out and she gave me her contact information to give to my Soldier and said if there was anything she could do he should reach out. It was awesome to see strangers trying their best to help people out.”
Quinlan and Barrett loaded the kayak with all the groceries, and Barrett gave him a push.
As Quinlan paddled more than 200 yards to the house, he said the water was around 18 inches deep in some areas and chest high in other areas.
“I was able to fit everything in the kayak and only had to make one trip. We dropped off a few gallons of milk, some packages of chicken and ground beef, eggs, lunch meat, fresh berries, some applesauce and some other odds and ends,” said Quinlan. “My biggest challenge was not looking like a total dork while piloting a kayak loaded with groceries, which I failed at miserably.”
The Soldier met Quinlan with a pull wagon and transferred the groceries over.
“I told him to come up on the net right away if he needed anything else and he pushed me back out. I paddled back, and my platoon leader pulled me in, and we called it a day,” said Quinlan. “The Soldier and his family were super grateful, and he reiterated over the phone afterwards several times how appreciative they were for the help and for our commands understanding of their predicament.”
Quinlan and Barrett were among the many Soldiers from units on Fort Campbell, Kentucky, who came to the aid of people impacted by flooding in the local area.
“Soldiers were donating their time and supplies and getting in that horrible water and really making a difference,” said Quinlan. “There were hundreds of other Soldiers of all ranks out there displaying selfless service and doing even more than I did.”
A native of San Diego, Quinlan has been in the U.S. Army since 2019. He previously served in the U.S. Marine Corps where he occasionally went ocean kayaking around San Diego during the summer.
“As a former Marine, there were definitely some jokes at work about my amphibious nature,” said Quinlan.
The 49th EOD Company is part of the 184th EOD Battalion, 52nd EOD Group and 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Command, the U.S. military’s premier multifunctional and deployable CBRNE formation.
Soldiers and U.S. Army civilians from the 20th CBRNE Command confront and defeat the world’s most dangerous hazards in support of joint, interagency and multinational operations.
Headquartered on Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, the 20th CBRNE Command has units on 19 bases in 16 states that enable military operations around the world and support domestic authorities across the nation.
Quinlan deployed to Syria for six months with the 49th EOD Company in 2023.
Quinlan said he was drawn to the Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal profession by the unique and important mission. He said he would encourage anyone who is interested in saving lives, protecting property and enabling American forces to fight and win to become a U.S. Army EOD technician. He said the EOD force is a closely knit group of highly talented warriors.
“The memories that really stick with me are the weird, good times you have training with your friends and teammates,” said Quinlan. “When you’re doing night lanes and it’s freezing at 0200, and someone starts singing or something, and suddenly everyone sings along, and everyone is laughing. Stuff like that is when you really become a unit. Those are the things that you miss when you move on.”
Quinlan said he has learned from many mentors throughout his career.
“I’ve had the privilege to work for some incredible people. I’ve tried to emulate something positive from all of them,” said Quinlan.
“I think it’s important to treat others as you want to be treated,” said Quinlan. “I try to treat Soldiers like adults and employ them towards their strengths. I encourage Soldiers to be themselves. I try to lead by example and empower individual initiative. I try to be the NCO that people want to work for.”
| Date Taken: | 04.17.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.17.2025 12:40 |
| Story ID: | 495532 |
| Location: | HOPKINSVILLE, KENTUCKY, US |
| Hometown: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 347 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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