As a major storm approaches, one can usually feel the eeriness of Mother Nature through the absence of birds chirping. However, last weekend this void was filled by the constant “tweeting” of the West Windsor Police Department. Hurricane Irene came and passed leaving West Windsor with some of its worst damage in years. Trees were destroyed, basements were flooded, and hundreds of homes lost power. But amid the chaos, many citizens tuned into the tweets of the police for an answer to their concerns.
Prior to the storm, the Twitter account of the police department had just over 40 followers. Several days later, it had nearly 250. From days before Irene hit New Jersey, the West Windsor police began posting multiple messages on what to expect from the storm. It passed on official township documents including the “state of emergency” issued by Mayor Hsueh. It also kept residents updated as to which areas in West Windsor are prone to flooding and need to be evacuated. After Irene departed, the tweets remained constant. Dozens of posts informed residents on which roads were closed and provided updates on the status of NJ Transit. As word spread of these reliable posts, more and more people joined in on the Twitter frenzy to keep up with the local reports. But perhaps the largest percentage of the followers cared not about the transportation feeds, but news on when their power would return.
I was one of many who frequently checked the West Windsor Police Twitter to find out when my house would finally re-enter the 21st century. Like everyone else, I was frustrated that the responsible power companies were providing no answers to the ongoing outage. I needed to hear solid facts and not just rumors on when electricity would return. So while JCP&L hid behind its corporate wall, I turned to the West Windsor Police Twitter. It provided detailed information as to which homes would get their power back as well as a post on its Facebook page for residents to list streets with no power. The police restored hope in its citizens by letting us know we weren’t forgotten and that the chiefs were working hard to get the power companies to do their job. When people are frustrated, a simple message like that is all we need.
So I am writing this letter to thank the West Windsor Police Department and its communications center for keeping its residents informed when the majority of us were “in the dark.” Thank you for staying up all night to provide us service that goes above and beyond your job description. And finally, as a teenager who is an active user of social media, thank you for taking something with no boundaries and using it to its full potential. For those of you who have yet to join Facebook or Twitter, I suggest you do so simply to follow the West Windsor Police Department (Twitter: westwindsorpd and Facebook: West Windsor Police Department.)
Jesse Yu
Yu is a senior at High School South.
