Prepping saves lives: Police looking for hero in Buffalo who broke into school during deadly storm and brought people to shelter

01/03/2023 / By JD Heyes

Police in Buffalo are not at all upset that a man broke into a school during the recent snow dump that crippled the city, leaving piles of the white stuff on roads and making travel impossible.

That’s because he didn’t do it to loot the place like so many other Buffalo residents did when they broke into local businesses. Rather, police are looking because he used his prepper instincts to save lives.

“Police are searching for a man who broke into a Buffalo-area school on Dec. 23 – not to charge him with any crimes, but to thank him for his selfless actions that likely saved several lives and two dogs during last week’s brutal winter storm,” Fox News reported over the weekend.

The man who police have dubbed “Merry Christmas Jay” actually left a note for authorities explaining how he shattered a window Friday evening in order bring several people into the Pine Hill School located in Cheektowaga, a suburb of Buffalo. “I’m terribly sorry about breaking the school window [and] for breaking in the kitchen,” the note begins.

“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,” he adds.

Surveillance video at the school captured the man walking down a hallway at the school dressed in heavy winter gear and covered in a dusting of snow.

A school keyholder received an alarm about the break-in at the school but because of the massive snowstorm, police were not able to respond. When officers finally were able to respond later in the weekend, they found the note written on a dry-erase board and signed, “Merry Christmas Jay.”

What’s more, police noted that the small group of people who entered the school took care of the property and only did what was necessary to stay alive. In fact, they also cleaned up after themselves.

The Cheektowaga Police Department pulled surveillance footage from inside the school, and said 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 department noted.

“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,” the department added in a statement.

At least 39 people have died due to the storm. Over the weekend, troops from the New York National Guard were seen going door-to-door to perform wellness checks, as authorities warned that more bodies could be found at some point.

Not all Buffalo residents were so civic-minded.

Multiple posts on social media last week showed chaos as police worked like mad to contain the wave of business thefts as shops and stores closed down due to the inclement weather, and most residents stayed indoors.

But not all: Scores of others saw the snow emergency as an opportunity to take what didn’t belong to them, with some containing audio of multiple shots being fired.

DEVELOPING: Heavy gunfire heard as looters flee a business in Buffalo, New York#Buffalo l #NY
Looting is occurring in the city following blizzard conditions. Footage shows someone firing several rounds as looters run from a building.
Injuries unknown.
pic.twitter.com/WyrQlr05N1

— Intel Point Alert (@IntelPointAlert) December 26, 2022

Buffalo police are arresting looters… pic.twitter.com/CAVcHAgUOF

— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) December 26, 2022

#BuffaloLooting The Winter Storm #WinterStorm #Elliott #Buffalo #NewYork #BuffaloNY #NYC #WinterStorm pic.twitter.com/dMduutUAEc

— Harish Deshmukh (@DeshmukhHarish9) December 26, 2022