SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.—Thousands of employees of San Bernardino County began returning to work Monday, five days after a county restaurant inspector and his wife opened fire on a gathering of his co-workers.
The reopening of much of the government’s offices signals an effort to return to normalcy for a community that has been in shock and mourning since Wednesday’s attack killed 14 people and injured 21.
“To honor them, to express our gratitude for their unimaginable sacrifice, we have to fight to maintain that ordinary,” San Bernardino County Supervisor Janice Rutherford said Monday of the victims. “We can’t be afraid of our lives, of our community, of our neighbors, of our co-workers.”
The Board of Supervisors said at a news conference that all facilities have increased security, including armed sheriff’s patrols, and officials were considering additional permanent safeguards. Counseling centers and a hotline were open, and managers were urged to look for signs of distress in their employees.
