奇速英语

暴风雪席卷布法罗，理发师为被困的人敞开店门送温暖

As the snow started to fall in Buffalo, New York, on Friday, Craig Elston’s barber(理发店) shop, C&C Cutz, was up and running with electricity, heat, and WiFi. Unlike those in the city who were less lucky than he was, the power stayed on through the storm.

Elston’s story started when a man knocked on the front door of his barber shop looking for shelter. Elston felt the need to just open his door up to the man. He assumed that at that point, the snowstorm couldn’t have gotten much worse and that people would all be able to go home soon. But then, he started to see news of people dying in the snowstorm, so he decided to go on TikTok and Facebook Live to invite anyone in the community who needed shelter to come and stay at his barber shop. Facebook groups created in Buffalo for the storm also shared Elston’s message, getting the word out even further.

In total, Elston estimated that 50 people came in and out of his shop from Friday until Monday. He said that around 30 people stayed all weekend, but others came in to warm up, charge their phones, and use WiFi to contact family members. He slept in his barber’s chair while those staying there slept in the other chairs, on the floor, and in the back of the shop. The majority of people who stayed at the barber shop had homes nearby but had lost power and needed a place that was warm or had gotten stuck outside when the snow started. Elston fronted(垫付) the money for those who needed transportation to get home. He paid for food, drinks, and snacks from the corner store. And he kept the electricity running throughout Christmas weekend.

Elston stayed with the group in his shop over the weekend, and he hasn’t been home since Friday. He even had to miss Christmas with his nine-year-old daughter. Elston, who said he is “exhausted,” finally got to go home on Tuesday evening.

“People’s been reaching out to me calling me a hero,” Elston said. “And the most I tell them is that I’m no hero. I’m just a person that got a heart.”