Some OPD officers still not back to work

Orlando police captain explains how many officers are still struggling

ORLANDO, Fla. – Orlando police Capt. Tim Crews said the morning of June 12, more than 150 Orlando police officers and dozens of others from different agencies showed moments of bravery and courage as the attack continued inside Pulse.

He said it wasn't until later that day when those officers went home and took off their uniform that the burden of what they witnessed overcame them, reminding us that officers are human, too. So as leader of OPD's Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) team, it's his job to help them heal.

"You are never going to understand any of that, that's impossible," Crews said. "First, you have to admit that this is the worst thing I have ever seen in my life. That it doesn't get any worse than this."

Crews said that admission is the first step in trying to fathom the unfathomable. And that's the first thing they did right after the attack.

He said the hundreds of officers and other first responders who were at Pulse that morning huddled in Boone High School's auditorium for a debriefing. The crowd split up into smaller groups of about 10 to talk through what they saw. In each group, there was a member of OPD's CISM team and a mental health professional.

"It's unfortunate we had to go through an incident like this, but I think it worked very well," Crews said. "There are a couple struggling more than others and I explained that everybody processes things differently."

Crews said the men and women who got to Pulse first saw the worst and are struggling the most. Some of them, he said, are not even ready to come back to work yet, including some of the 11 OPD officers involved in that shootout with gunman Omar Mateen.

"I really can't comment on where they are or what they are doing," he said. "Some are still processing and others are back to full-time work."

Still processing and still healing.

"They came into this field to help people and when they see something on the scale of Pulse, that many casualties, it's hard for them because that's their community, that is who they are here to protect."