People return to Waterfront Park a day after 5 teenagers were shot at Big Four Bridge
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - The scene at Waterfront Park looked appeared calm on Sunday, despite one teenager being shot on Monday and five more Sunday night.
A day after being lit up by police lights, Sunday at Waterfront Park was a much different scene. People were enjoying their day by riding scooters, biking, and having picnics.
Some of them, like Mahesh Seshadri, weren’t even aware of the shootings.
“I’m absolutely shocked,” Seshadri said. “It’s a beautiful day, we wanted to come out and ride a bike. It’s a beautiful ride up here. We always come here for walks across the bridge. It’s quite shocking.”
Seshadri has been in Louisville since 1991 and has always felt safe for the most part. Now he’s going to be much more cautious when he makes his way down to the park.
“I’ll start looking over my shoulder, right?” Seshadri said. “Especially right across the parking lot? That’s where we always park our car. I think that will definitely make us think twice.”
But not everyone felt that way. When WAVE News asked Ashlee Steele if she doesn’t have a problem coming to the park.
“Absolutely, 100%,” Steele said. “I’m not going to live in fear. If it’s my time to go, it’s my time to go.”
Steele’s mentality extends to the people around her. Since Saturday night’s victims were teenagers, Steele was asked if she would be comfortable with her family hanging out at the park.
“I would say be aware of your surroundings, but I don’t live in fear and I don’t think anyone around me should live in fear either,” she said.
After the shooting, LMPD’s commander pleaded with parents to supervise their kids.
“Please know where your kids are, know what they’re doing, and be down here with them so that we can stop this violence that it’s occurring inside Louisville Metro and specifically down here at Waterfront Park,” LMPD Major Brian Kuriger said.
Anthony Spencer agrees.
“Parents gotta start getting ahold of their kids, like for real,” Spencer said. “If it’s 11 o’clock at night and your 14 year old ain’t the house and you don’t know where he is, then y’all need to start getting ahold of your kids.”
Spencer says he always makes sure to check in with his daughter and scan his surroundings whenever he’s out with his family.
A practice that may seem like common sense, but one he says is more important than ever.
“This is not going to stop if parents just keep dropping their kids off at this park with no grown-up around,” Spencer said. “They’re 14 and 15 and they’re hanging around with someone who’s 17 and 18 and he’s in a gang, what you think that 14 year old’s gonna do? He’s going to follow suit.”
LMPD did not give an update on the five victims Sunday. As of Saturday night, there was at least one in critical condition.
Copyright 2022 WAVE. All rights reserved.
