IOWA, USA — As cleanup continues from the damaging Iowa derecho on Aug. 10, the kindness of one Iowan was a welcome gesture to an out-of-state man helping to get the lights back on.
Chad Medlin is a volunteer firefighter for the Eau Claire, Mich. Fire Department, but was working for a construction company while in Cedar Rapids to help restore power.
He shared on his Facebook page a touching letter left on a Cedar Rapids electric meter for a lineman, expressing gratitude for their "hard and exhausting work."
Medlin shared photos like this on his Facebook page of the damage he saw.
The letter itself is below.
Medlin's Facebook post has been shared more than 15,000 times.
Medlin, who was touched by the anonymous gesture, wrote his own response to the letter:
Dear Cedar Rapids Iowa,
I would gladly work in your city over and over again. Your hospitality has been unbelievable. We were wore out when we left Long Island. We were ready to go home and quite honestly I was pretty upset when I learned that we were re routed to come here other than go home because I’m tired and I miss my kids. 7/16’s in Long Island and 7/17’s here start to wear on you. However, I’m pissed off at the lack of news coverage you have received. I’m pissed off that you guys are hurting and social media and the news are more worried about politics and the color of someone’s skin. I’m pissed off that I’m seeing tents in front yards and crushed play sets and toys and people are more worried about votes and riots than they are this community. We went from “when’s our power going to be on?!” And getting yelled at to free water and home cooked meals. As dumb as it sounds, this town reminds me of September 12th 2001. I think this country could take lessons from this city. This note was left on a meter for one of our lineman to find. Cedar Rapids Iowa, you will forever have a piece of my heart. Thank you for making it a little easier to be away from home.
As of Friday morning, over 10,000 customers in Linn County were still without power.
On Thursday, President Trump approved Gov. Reynolds' request for FEMA Individual Assistance for Linn County, where Cedar Rapids is located.
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WATCH: Complete derecho coverage from Local 5 on YouTube