ORLANDO, Fla. – “We all remember what happened last year and how scary it was,” said Abdullah Hakim, who’s working downtown this Halloween.
Hakim ran for his life last Halloween when a 17-year-old opened fire downtown, hitting nine people.
“A lot of my coworkers were physically right next to the shooting when it happened, so it’s a little bit more traumatic for them,” he said.
Just this week, the families of the two people killed during last year’s Halloween shooting filed lawsuits alleging that “OPD officers and agents negligently failed to implement policies and procedures to ensure safety in the downtown area last year.”
[BELOW: Families of Orlando Halloween mass shooting victims file suit ‘to get answers’]
In a statement, the city of Orlando said, in part, “The Orlando Police Department will actively monitor roadways throughout the evening and make adjustments as needed to manage anticipated crowds.”
Hakim said he believes the city has made changes to ensure everyone’s safety.
“We’re all pretty wary. I’m optimistic, so we kind of hope for the best,” he said.
After the shooting, the city made several changes, including reopening Orange Avenue and side streets to traffic during late-night hours and using barricades to keep pedestrians closer to the sidewalks. The city of Orlando also implemented a new policy requiring businesses to have a $250 after-midnight alcohol sales permit.
“I don’t know if the permits are going to change anything,” said Shannine Anderson, who came downtown to celebrate Halloween. “I don’t think it was the business owners causing the issue. I don’t really know — maybe it was. I think just having as many cops around as possible helps because there’s a presence.”
Friday night, several people came out dressed in costumes as police officers and city workers monitored and patrolled the downtown area.
“I’m not gonna live my life on one event that happened a year ago,” said Ashli Kerr. “There’s been shootings at trillions of other places, so you have to keep going.”
Businesses must also have police protection and security on weekends and during five major holidays at certain hours of the day.
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