Fanwood Officer Returns From Puerto Rico

FANWOOD, NJ — After spending two weeks in Puerto Rico to help with post-hurricane relief, Fanwood Police Officer Elliott Bernard says the enormity of the damage, even two months after the storm, is more than images can capture.

Bernard, a member of the Union County Emergency Response Team (UCERT), was among five law enforcement officers from the county to be selected for Operation New Jersey Pride, a statewide effort organized by the New Jersey State Police to help keep law and order in Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

Bernard flew down on Oct. 21 and stayed through Nov. 4 where he said the airport looked like a ghost town. He also noted how the hotels in the area had black mold everywhere.

Bernard was part of a four-man team who would assist the Puerto Rican State Police in Caguas, a city about 25 miles southwest of San Juan, which took a direct hit from Maria.

“These officers from Caguas were working 12 hours a day since before the hurricane. Most of them didn’t have uniforms," Bernard stated. "They were wearing their regular clothes. They didn’t have power, so they couldn’t wash their uniforms. They wore various every-day shirts and their gun belts. They had no radios. They communicated by waving each other down or cellphones.”

Crime and violence is very high in the area as a result of the storm, Bernard recalled residents getting a generator or food and water and then being robbed by gang members as they walked to their cars.

“Some supermarkets with generators were open but there were limited amounts of everything. There were lines three football fields long. You were only allowed one bag of ice, one case of water," Bernard said. "People were extremely frustrated. Bigger stores like Home Depot would get, like, 25 generators at a time every couple days. So people would line up at 4 o’clock in the afternoon the day before for the next morning."

Despite the issues, Bernard noted the great spirit he encountered in many of the citizens.

“They would come up to us and say ‘thank you’. What I found, which will stick with me forever, was that a lot of people were so optimistic," Bernard said. "They were going home to no power, no anything. They would see us and say thank you for being here, thank you for helping us."

(Photos via Elliot Bernard)

Photo 1 - Officer Bernard, center, with two officers from the Caguas police.

Photo 2 - Officer Bernard, kneeling in front, with his group.

Photo 3 - Caguas police officer Ralffy Diaz Reyes at a traffic post.

Photo 4 - Officer Bernard at his desk at Fanwood Police Department.

Photo 5 - Heavy traffic, downed utility pole.

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