On February 28, 1993, flight paramedic Larry Johnson and his CareFlite crew were dispatched toward Waco, Texas, for a report of multiple casualties and multiple shooters.
What followed would become one of the most infamous events in modern American history.
In this episode of The DOHP Signal, Derek O. Hanley sits down with Larry to hear the story from a perspective rarely represented in accounts of the Branch Davidian siege: the paramedic tasked with caring for the people caught in it.
Larry recounts arriving to find dead and critically wounded ATF agents, making difficult triage decisions in the first chaotic moments, and then rotating through the medical operation surrounding the compound for the 51-day standoff.
He was still there when it ended.
But the end of the siege wasn't the end of Waco for Larry.
More than three decades later, he discusses the psychological toll of prolonged hypervigilance, memories that continue to haunt him, the particular anguish of knowing children were inside the compound, and how those experiences followed him home to his own family.
The conversation also explores PTSD in first responders, the evolution of our understanding of occupational trauma, treatment, and why Larry ultimately decided to tell his story in his book, Into the Fire: A Paramedic's Battle with Waco and the Aftermath.
This isn't an attempt to retell the history of Waco.
It's the story of what it was like to respond to it—and what happens when the call follows you home.
In this episode:
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The dispatch that sent CareFlite toward Waco
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Landing amid a mass-casualty incident
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Triage decisions Larry still thinks about today
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51 days of sustained operational stress
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Psychological warfare during the siege
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Witnessing the final fire
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The children inside the compound
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PTSD and first-responder mental health
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Seeking treatment decades later
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Writing Into the Fire
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What Larry wants today's first responders to learn from his experience
Connect with today's guest:
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Author Page: https://larryjohnsonauthor.com
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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-johnson-intothefire/
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Amazon Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/INTO-FIRE-PARAMEDICS-BATTLE-AFTERMATH-ebook/dp/B0H6ZD2PFC
Connect with DOHP:
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Website: https://dohp.net
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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thatsDOHP
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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thatsdohp
Watch the full episode above or listen to The DOHP Signal on your preferred podcast platform.
The DOHP Signal explores operational life, leadership, systems, authenticity, storytelling, and meaningful work.
Signal over noise.