The close-knit community of Goddings Road, Station Hill, St Michael, is reeling after two fatal shootings within just four days left residents questioning the safety of their once-peaceful neighbourhood.
The violence began on Sunday, November 16, when 33-year-old Kereen Ackeem Holder was shot and killed along the Station Hill main road shortly after 5:15 p.m. Just three days later, on Wednesday, November 19, 25-year-old Jelani Javon Greaves was fatally shot around 8 p.m. in the veranda of a residence on Goddings Road. Their deaths marked the 43rd and 45th homicides for the year.
For residents who have called this area home for years, the back-to-back tragedies have shattered any remaining sense of security.
An individual, who requested to remain anonymous out of concern for her safety, described the constant anxiety that now defines her daily routine.
“Whenever I hear any noise I does shut my door fast,” she said as she recounted the Sunday evening shooting.
“I was sleeping but it wake me up in one when I hear the noise.”
The incident has forced her to dramatically alter her business operations.
“When I see a certain time I does shut shop . . . When I hear certain commotions like fighting, I shut down; I don’t care how early it is.”
Her heightened vigilance stems not just from the recent shootings but from a frightening experience years ago when men chased someone directly into her place of business. The pursued man jumped over her counter and hid in her home, forcing her son to call the police.
Now, she relies on faith to get through each day.
“I does pray and ask God to protect me. That’s all I can do right now.”
For Leslie, a longtime resident who grew up on First Avenue in Station Hill, the recent violence represents a heartbreaking departure from the community he once knew.
“Personally it’s sad to know that a neighbourhood I grew up in has come to this,” he reflected.
“I grew up in the first avenue in a complete different era where it was a community but now it’s something totally different.”
The loss of two young lives particularly troubles him.
“The sad part of it is that a mother and father is losing their child because of incidents that could have been resolved otherwise,” he said.
“It seems that this generation does not know how to resolve the conflict without resorting to drastic measures.”
Despite the violence on his doorstep, Leslie maintains he is not overly concerned about his personal safety though he acknowledges the unpredictability of modern life.
“I feel alright otherwise. I’m not really concerned about my safety because I don’t get into anything. Although nowadays you never know.”
He believes the solution lies in sustained parental guidance.
“Parents need to continue giving guidance to their children. You can’t stop talking to your children once they get big. You have to keep telling them and drilling it in their head what is right. Then, it might stick and register.”
Not all residents share the same level of alarm. Another anonymous resident insisted that the shootings don’t reflect the true character of the area.
“I don’t have any concerns. This place is a quiet place and what went down is just two men from in the street fighting and it could have been avoided.
“That not something that really goes on in here. Everybody looks out for one another. You can’t come in this street and do anything to anybody,” he said. (DDS)
