Buffalo, New York – In the midst of looters, failed leadership and the traffic deaths of 39 people, police are searching for one man they are crediting with saving several lives. On December 23rd, the man broke in into a Buffalo-area school and sheltered several citizens and two dogs as the deadliest winter storm in decades ravaged New York.
The man, who police are calling “Merry Christmas Jay,” left a note explaining that he broke a window on Friday evening so that he could bring several people inside Pine Hill School in the Buffalo suburb of Cheektowaga.
“I’m terribly sorry about breaking the school window [and] for breaking in the kitchen,” the note reads.
“Got stuck at 8 p.m. Friday and slept in my truck with two strangers. Just trying not to die. There were 7 elderly people also stuck and out of fuel. I had to do it to save everyone and get them shelter and food and a bathroom.”
A keyholder at the school had received an alarm about a break-in on Friday evening, but police couldn’t immediately respond due to the storm.
When an officer eventually made it to the school later that weekend, he found the note from “Merry Christmas Jay.”
When the Cheektowaga Police Department pulled surveillance footage from inside the school, they “witnessed people taking care of people.”
“There was a freezer full of food but no one touched it. They only ate what was necessary to stay alive. They used the gym for the kids to play and pulled the smart boards out of the classrooms to watch the news for updates,” the Cheektowaga Police Department said.
“They had 2 dogs they were also attending to. When they were finally able to leave safely, you never would have known anyone was there.”
At least 39 people died from the winter storm, which pounded Buffalo on Friday and Saturday.
