‘This is something we practice’: Central District daycare hit by gunfire amid shooting

SEATTLE — Seattle Police responded to a shooting in the Central District in Seattle on Monday afternoon around 3:00 p.m.

Police said it was a drive-by shooting and a 47-year-old man suffered multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to Harborview Medical Center for his injuries and is in satisfactory condition. Amid the gunfire, daycare A 4 Apple Learning Center was struck with bullets and one of the center’s windows shattered.

“At first I heard pop, pop, pop and I’m like ooh somebody must be shooting or something outside then I see something hit the glass,” one of the co-owners of the center, Appollonia Washington, said. “We were transitioning from circle time and I just immediately said you guys army crawl, teachers army crawl, I think been shot and confirmed it when I saw the glass break over there.”

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Shooting near Central District daycare

Washington and the other co-owner, Deborah Coleman said this is frustrating and something needs to be done.

“We’re just here to do our jobs and do good quality care for our families and then this is what we have to deal with,” Coleman said.

Marissa Garrett lives in the building above the center and said the area isn’t safe.

“You should never have to worry that their snack time or story time is going to be associated with a shooting,” Garrett said.

She wasn’t home at the time of the shooting but said she was heartbroken hearing what happened.

“I had 24 children sitting in front of me and they knew exactly what we do because this is something that we practice because of the area that we are in,” Washington said. “I don’t want to ever experience this again, can we get patrol can we get officers walking by you know this is, this freaks me out.”

All three women told us that they’ve asked the city and the mayor for help but have not received any response.

“You got the squatters you got the people doing drugs in the stairwell the fire alarms going off constantly it’s been a mess,” Garrett said.

If you have any information call SPD.

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