Bryan Earle planned to finish his high school career in Puerto Rico, but Hurricane Maria had other plans.  He moved to Voorhees, New Jersey to live with his father to avoid the storm’s deadly aftermath.

  Hurricane Irma hit Puerto Rico on September 6th, 2017. When Bryan’s family heard that another stronger, more dangerous hurricane was going to hit Puerto Rico, they immediately began to prepare. They knew water was going to be scarce after the storm, so they bought several cases of water and froze them.

  Hurricane Maria made landfall in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017 as a Category 4 Hurricane with sustained winds of 155 mph and storm surges of 9 feet. It would soon move inland to where Bryan lived in Arecibo.

  Bryan’s family felt ready, but they could not have possibly prepared for the destruction Hurricane Maria left in her wake.

  “It was really traumatic,” said Bryan, “You could see palm trees swaying from side to side.”

  The storm lasted six hours in Arecibo, but to Bryan, it felt like an eternity.

  “The noises were loud,” said Bryan, “You could hear pieces of things fly by. It was all a mess.”

  Bryan and his family survived the storm, but others were not so lucky. The official death count in Puerto Rico is 48, but officials expect that the actual number is closer to 450.

  When Bryan stepped outside to survey the damage, he was dumbfounded.

  Losing power immediately after the storm had arrived, Arecibo was devastated.

  Power lines were strewn about on the ground, while the electrical posts were snapped completely in half.  Streets were cluttered with trees, forcing cars to weave in and out of the road to avoid the debris. Many houses sat naked without a roof; entire buildings lay crumbled on the ground.

  The Puerto Rico Bryan loved all his life, now lay in ruin.

  The bar where his mother worked was completely washed into the ocean, leaving her without a job. His school was also severely damaged.

  “Everything was different,” said Bryan, reflecting on the storm’s aftermath.  

  Bryan’s neighborhood unified after the storm.

  “Everybody in my neighborhood was doing good because my mom would cook,” said Bryan.

  Although Bryan’s family had frozen water bottles in preparation of the storm, they ran out after only a week.

  Fortunately for Bryan’s family, they were able to receive water from one their neighbors for free.

  Without power, Bryan was forced to use rainwater to shower. He also washed his clothes by hand.

  As of October 20, nearly 1 million people of Puerto Rico’s 3.67 million were still without drinking water. Many people resorted to drinking water from hazardous wells, while others drank from contaminated creeks and streams.

  “[The water] had to be unsanitary,” said Bryan, “But it was all we had.”

  Alongside representatives from Puerto Rico, the United States government has stepped in to help the people affected by Hurricane Maria.

  Bryan credits the mayor of Arecibo, Carlos Molina, with keeping the people’s interest in mind. Molina’s main objective has been to get generators for the people so they can use electricity again.

  Facing the situation at hand, Bryan had to seriously consider leaving Puerto Rico.

  Edwin Meléndez, an economist and director of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College, predicts that between 100,000 and 200,000 Puerto Ricans will leave for the mainland United States. In Florida alone, as of October 3, the airports have received 27,000 people fleeing Puerto Rico.

  “I decided to move once I saw my school was pretty bad,” Bryan said, “I didn’t want to get left behind in my studies.”

  Bryan bought a one way ticket to Baltimore; his father eventually brought him to live in Voorhees.

   “You don’t know how hard it was,” said Bryan. “All my friends left behind. Everything that I built up is now gone. It was really hard leaving my family.”

  He was optimistic in coming to the States, but he hopes to visit Puerto Rico when the situation there

improves.

  Bryan plans to finish his high school studies at Eastern while experiencing all that the mainland United States has to offer.

  “Everything that I left behind and everything that I’ve done has been absolutely worth it,” Bryan said, “I haven’t regretted anything.”