‘We failed these kids.’ 911 calls detail frantic scene after Fort Lauderdale mass shooting
Newly released 911 calls detail the fraught and chaotic scene that unfolded Wednesday night after a mass shooting in Fort Lauderdale. Callers were in tears, begging for help, wondering why such a violent act would happen in a neighborhood filled with children.
“This don’t make sense,” one caller said. “They know it’s freaking kids that live over here. What is wrong with y’all. There is something wrong with this generation. It’s f***** up.”
Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Patrick Lynn and Investigations Bureau Chief Luis Alvarez visited the apartment complex Thursday to talk to residents and express concern for the “violent shooting,” police said.
READ MORE HERE: ‘Blood all over.’ 2 minors, 3 adults injured in Fort Lauderdale shooting, police say
Around 8:40 p.m. Wednesday, two groups got into an altercation that ended in gunfire at the Broward Gardens apartment complex, in the 2900 block of Northwest 19th Street, police said. Five people — two juveniles and three adults — were wounded and taken to the Broward Health Medical Center.
One 911 caller noted the kids were playing with fireworks when another group of people ran up and started shooting. One child was shot in the leg, two others were shot in the arm.
“Look at all that blood,” she told someone on the other end of the phone line.
The mother of one of the children who got shot also called 911 begging for help and ambulances to come.
Another woman was in her home when at least one bullet went through her window, she frantically explained to the 911 operator.
“Thank god for that extra glass,” she said.
After telling the operator what she saw, the woman tried to grapple with the situation that unfolded near her.
“They don’t see that they ain’t doing nothing but killing each other...an innocent child could get shot,” she said on the 911 call. “It’s so sad that I am the parent of this generation and we failed these kids.”
This story was originally published July 6, 2023 at 6:46 PM.
%20Cropped%20(2).jpg)