KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) – First responders from East Tennessee have made the trip to Florida to help Hurricane Irma victims. Priority Ambulance is one of those groups. Two were deployed on Sunday to Florida to help hurricane Irma victims.

Tony Lowery and his partner traveled to Tampa on Sunday. On Monday, they hunkered down in a gym with dozens of other first responders and they waited for the storm to pass.

“It’s not safe for us to be out not only to drive but also to rescue people or anything like that,” said Lowery.

He believes they will be deployed to Tampa or Miami to help respond to 911 calls.

“We were told a little while ago that they got the 911 center back up and they had already received 150 calls in 10 minutes,” he said.

He said that plea came from victims in Tampa. He expects to respond to calls about head injuries when he first arrives. In addition, he believes they’ll get several calls after homeowners return to their properties and see the damage.

“That gets their heart rate going and so that could cause heart attacks, anxiety, and panic attacks,” he said.

Lowery said he thinks they will be in Florida for about a week.