Drive-by shooting survivors still trembling

Survivors of Sunday's drive-by shooting in Franklyn Town, Kingston, are recounting the horror they felt as the party they were attending was abruptly halted by gunfire.

The shooting occurred about 11 p.m. at the intersection of Wellington Avenue and Summerset Drive in the Top Road section of the community. According to Susan*, her life flashed before her eyes after her right arm was grazed by one of the bullets.

"Mi turn fool. Same time mi feel the sting pon mi hand. Mi run off and go behind a fence because all mi could hear a baay shot and mi no see weh it a come from," she said. "Mi bawl out say 'Mi get shot, mi get shot' and same time mi fren dem run off. Mi only member a pee miself before mi run off wid dem. Mi swear think mi ago dead, enuh."

One resident said she was unable to sleep in the aftermath of the shooting which took place metres away from her home.

"I am still trembling as we speak. I could not tell what was happening because I was inside my house. But all I could hear was a barrage of shots being fired. My ears started to ring and up to now I have not slept since the incident took place," she said. Up to press time, seven of the 12 victims had been released from hospital.

Meanwhile, Head of the Kingston East Police Division, Senior Superintendent Tomielee Chambers, says she will now examine applications for party permits with greater strictness following the shooting. She said that the police are still probing the circumstances behind the shooting, which is the first reported incident in the space since last August.

"Everything was good and they applied for a permit and got a permit. So what I was told is that while the party was in session, explosions were heard and several people were hit. We are now trying to pick up where is this coming from, if it is the same long-time feud," she said.

"To be honest, based on the assessment, I must give citizens credit there. This is the first incident since August, so it is not a matter of saying I grant a permit and now regret doing so. No, they have been behaving themselves in the space," she added.

*Name changed to protect identity

- R.M.