Scarily close

Earlier today when Mamoo and I were returning from a trip to the library, we noticed three helicopters hovering really close to my neighborhood. As we got closer, it became apparent that they were focused on the street that's one street over from where I live and it looked like they had closed the street down completely. I figured there had to be a bad accident, mostly likely coming out of the library where some people like to make a brazen dash across all four lanes of traffic to go left. But I was wrong.

When I got home I did a quick search online to see if the accident was showing up. It wasn't, but a shooting was. At a nearby "smoke shop", some nut job had walked in shooting. One guy was shot as he bolted from the place in search of help. They knew there were others in the store, including the owner. The first reports were that the shooter was still in the store. The S.W.A.T. team had converged and were surrounding the place. It was a bad situation and people were warned to avoid the area, but it seemed like it was pretty much under control.

Move forward thirty minutes...I go to pick up Master J. Watching the kids pour out of the school and head down the street towards their homes, I think momentarily that it's good that they have the criminal contained in the store because besides my son's school, there is another elementary school and a high school within a two mile radius. I get Master J home and settled with his homework (as settled as much as he can be anyway.) Then I go back online to check on the progress of the barricaded criminal. Only he's not barricaded in the store. And he never was.

After finally making it inside the store, the S.W.A.T. team didn't find their gunman, they did find the two other victims. And at this point the gunman had been on the loose for over three hours. Starting at a location within a mile of my home. And as of right now, over seven hours later, there's still no indication that he's been apprehended. The helicopters have finally stopped hovering, flying past periodically instead. I can only assume they are doing some sort of ground search to try and find this guy before he does more damage.

I feel awful for the victims, I imagine it was just a situation of being in the wrong place at the wrong time for them. I feel bad for the families who lost them too. At some level, I suspect I'll feel some sadness for the criminal too. What could make someone do such a thing? Maybe not. Maybe I'll be pissed off angry by the time they catch him. But right now, I just wonder why.

So yeah, complete lock down at the old Mirth plantation.