ORLANDO, Fla. – For the first time since the chaos at Lake Eola on July 4 during Fireworks at the Fountain, News 6 spoke with Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer regarding what happened.
The mayor said they will be doing an after-action meeting to review what happened that night.
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Dyer said it is, “to evaluate whether there ought to be any changes, but so far, (Orlando Fire Department) and (Orlando Police Department) responded in the fashion that they should; they set up reunification centers, and again, it was not an actual event, there was just people that were running.”
Orlando police released video from the night, and it showed people running and falling over each other as they tried to flee the area, minutes into the fireworks display.
Orlando’s police chief said there was no shooting, and that all of it may have been prompted by fireworks that were set off a block away. Additionally, police said no criminal activity was found that led to what happened.
“I’m just kind of disappointed with, you know, all these shootings that we’ve had around the country, that people were on edge,” Dyer said. “But we’re going to continue to live our lives, we’re going to continue to go to the grocery store, and put our kids in school, and we’re going to continue to have concerts, and gatherings, and sporting events, we’re not gonna let the bad guys win.”
Another issue that night as thousands ran — the lights in that area weren’t turned back on until much later, making it difficult to see.
A spokesperson for the city of Orlando said they are aware that was a challenge and they are looking into it.
As far as any changes to major events moving forward, Dyer said, “I don’t think there’s a whole lot of changes, the OPD an OFD response was what we would’ve wanted, there was a reunification center that was set up, there was a lost and found center.”
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