Just days after returning from Puerto Rico, Port Authority staff at Kennedy Airport on Wednesday reflected on the devastation they witnessed, as well as the resiliency of the people.
The group of 89 from New York and New Jersey spent weeks helping repair portions of the roof of the San Juan airport, as well as the interior of the building and 2,000 feet of fencing.
The team camped out on a mezzanine level of the terminal, and were followed by another group of about 90 people who will stay and work for approximately 12 additional days.
“Everybody put their best foot forward…no matter what the conditions were, which at times we would say were deplorable,” said Lt. Richard Munnelly of the Port Authority’s Emergency Services Unit. “We were very humbled by what we experienced there.”
The group brought 50,000 pounds of supplies for their own use and were able to give away excess food and water to those who needed it, said John Selden, deputy general manager of JFK. They distributed the meals, extra blankets and cots to hundreds of people who were sleeping in the terminal, waiting for a flight out.
The group also brought 20,000 pounds of supplies — including food, clothing, diapers and baby formula — specifically for 10 distribution centers around the territory. The team kept an eye out for families they knew needed help, sometimes having to pull to the side of the road, with many others, to try and find an internet connection.
“People lost their entire house, it was just gone. So whatever you could give was going somewhere good,” Munnelly said. “It’s just heart-wrenching to see where they were and where they are. It’s very emotional when you see these people and they’re still positive and they still embrace you.”
Munnelly said the devastation of the island was particularly visible from a helicopter.
“I couldn’t see one house that had a roof left on it,” he said about the neighborhood directly behind the airport in San Juan. “The problem is it takes laborers to do these repairs, those same laborers are displaced because their own family’s lives have been turned upside down by the storm.”
Relief to the island “will get there,” he added, “it’s just a matter of time.”
