Westmoreland amputee still shelters in church kitchen months after Hurricane Melissa

WESTMORELAND — Edgar Bruce, 71, has been sleeping in a church kitchen since the day after Hurricane Melissa tore through his community and brought his wooden house down around him.

Bruce, who is diabetic and has lived with the disease for about 28 years, has already lost his right foot and sight in his left eye. When the storm struck, he was inside the house. As the rain and wind intensified, he sheltered under the bed. Sensing the structure was giving way, he called his nephew, who lived next door in a concrete building. The nephew pulled him out moments before the house collapsed. Almost nothing was recovered — only the waterlogged bed.

A long-time member of the church — he rejoined after returning from another parish and has worshipped there for more than six years — Bruce was among roughly a dozen people who took refuge there after the storm. The others have since left, leaving him alone. A woman who had filmed an earlier video of his plight brought the bed and other belongings into the kitchen so he could rest more comfortably. He says the kitchen is the only spot wide enough to hold the bed.

Friends and neighbours have donated some materials, enough for carpenters to raise the frame of a new structure, but work has stalled. Bruce says he lacks money for the rest: about 16 pieces of 2x4, ten pieces of 1x3 by 16 feet, three pieces of 10-foot capping, and 20 to 25 sheets of plywood. A pit is already in place; he wants a toilet fitted and a roof installed so he can move back. He has never priced the full job at a hardware store. Through a friend he received 14 sheets of nine-foot zinc from overseas donors — the only major contribution so far. He is dealing with Rock Hardware near the waterworks in Westmoreland.

Bruce says he registered with officials who photographed the ruined house and took his TRN and national ID, but a GPS-related error has blocked any payment and he has received nothing. He has had no clear order to leave the church, though he senses growing unease. Friends supply food and other help; relatives are largely unable or unavailable. He pays someone to wash his clothes and has no income. Before losing his foot and eyesight he worked as a minibus and taxi driver and in construction.

His only son, whom he called his heartbeat, died after a truck crash while returning from a party; another person in the crash was badly injured. That son had helped him start the house before Melissa.

Bruce gets about on a walker and public transport, folding the walker for drivers to stow when he travels to appointments such as the eye doctor. He continues to attend the church’s Wednesday fasting services, saying he draws more strength from them than from regular Sunday worship.