Following the El Paso mass shooting, residents of the Texas town are, to no surprise, heavily concerned.
In a story published on BuzzFeed, numerous people in the area, especially those who were in the Walmart that Saturday, have voiced their timidness about doing simple, everyday chores such as going to the grocery store.
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The article focused on Monica Acosta, a mother of three who was inside the superstore as the shooting transpired. Acosta was inside with her daughter and recalls the horrid sound of screaming. She told BuzzFeed she doesn’t feel leaving the house since the events of the day.
“I’ve been trying to stay calm, but how do you ever remain calm after that?” asked Acosta.
The tragedy has flipped the town upside down. Residents used to boast about the neighborly-feel of the town, and Acosta mentioned how she typically left the front door unlocked at night. All of that changed overnight as fear of what could happen next has swept through the neighborhood.
Having been targeted by an outsider of El Paso, residents are fearful that this could happen again.
“It’s so different when it hits home. A lot of people are scared. They believe another shooter is out there, or that they’re targeting all the Walmarts because we all shop there,” said Acosta. “A lot of people in that Walmart would come from Chihuahua, and I don’t think they will come as much anymore.”
There’s also an active Facebook community page that is littered with residents sharing similar stories of thinking twice about where and when they leave the house.
One post by Anna Kaiser mentioned that the mother of two was about to leave to go to JCPenney with her kids but decided it was best to leave her children home. Another resident said she’ll make sure someone is always with her kids at home if she has to go anywhere.
Earlier, Octavio Ramiro Lizarde, a survivor of the shooting, spoke at a press conference on Wednesday and explained how “grateful” he is to be alive, but also the impact the loss of his nephew has had on him.
“I won’t go into details, but it was a horrible image, and I hope nobody ever goes through [that]. It’s very painful. And I hope that my family and I get better emotionally, and everybody in the city and around the country whose been helping us, and the other ones who were affected, I hope they are OK, as well,” Lizarde stated.
The shooting resulted in the death of 22 innocent civilians with more than two dozen others wounded and numerous others reeling in the aftermath. Federal authorities have identified this as a domestic terrorism case after learning about the beliefs and ideology of the shooter.
