VIRGINIA BEACH — Ever wonder what in the @?#!! happened to those old “no-cursing” signs at the Oceanfront?
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Virginia Beach Police Foundation dedicates money to first responder mental health services
VIRGINIA BEACH — On May 31, police, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel answered the call to duty at Building 2 — a site Police Chief Jim Cervera described as a “war zone.”
While the community has banded together to support survivors, victims, and affected city employees, representatives from the Virginia Beach Police Foundation said they’re mindful responders might experience what is usually associated with military combat vets– PTSD.
Read more »Congratulations to our Board Member, Peter Decker:
Gov. Northam Appoints Four to Old Dominion University Board of Visitors
Original Article By Joe Garvey, Inside ODU
Gov. Ralph Northam has named three new members, and reappointed a current member, to Old Dominion University’s Board of Visitors.
The new members are:
- Robert Broermann of Virginia Beach, the chief financial officer of Sentara Healthcare.
- Peter G. Decker III of Norfolk, an attorney with the Decker Law Firm.
- MacArthur DeShazer Sr. of Woodbridge, the president and CEO of Aethiops Business Solutions, LLC.
13 dead, including gunman, in shooting at Virginia Beach Municipal Center
VIRGINIA BEACH
A longtime city employee shot and killed 12 people and injured at least four others after opening fire Friday afternoon in the public works building, making it the country’s deadliest mass shooting this year.
Police said officers killed the man, identified Saturday morning as DeWayne Craddock, a long-time engineer with the city, after he fired at them in the city’s scenic Municipal Center in Princess Anne, a campus of about 30 brick Colonial-style buildings.
The four injured were all in surgery Friday, Police Chief James Cervera said during a news conference a couple of hours after the massacre.
One officer was shot during the exchange but was saved by his bulletproof vest, the chief said.
“This is the most devastating day in the history of Virginia Beach,” Mayor Bobby Dyer said in the news conference. “The people involved are our friends, co-workers, neighbors and colleagues.”
By Sara Gregory, Jane Harper and Alissa Skelton
Staff writers, The Virginian Pilot
May 31, 2019 | Updated Jun 18, 2019
35 minutes of terror documented in Virginia Beach police scanner
By Gary A. Harki and Katherine Hafner
Staff writers | Jun 1, 2019
VIRGINIA BEACH
Thirty-five minutes.
That’s all the time it took for a gunman to end 12 lives and lose his own.
Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer may have called the tragedy at Municipal Building 2 Friday the city’s darkest hour, but there was some light — the heroism of the officers who ran into gunfire to save lives.
Police scanner traffic archived online gives a minute-by-minute account of how the worst mass shooting in the city’s history unfolded.
The first sign of trouble came in about 4:08 p.m.
“One down, gunshot wound 2405 Courthouse Drive Building 2,” a dispatcher says. “Caller is advising of a male in front of building 2, possibly shot.”
Sirens wail on the scanner and a dispatcher notes that someone is still firing.
A minute later a victim is spotted on a stairwell in the back of the building. An officer wants clarification — there’s a victim and an active shooter?
“Still actively hearing gunshots.”
Virginia Beach police scanner audio from 3:49 to 4:18 p.m. documents the terror as initial reports of gunfire at the Municipal Center come in.
Around 4:11 p.m. four plainclothes detectives arrive.
“Do we have any idea where the shooter is at,” says a shaky voice on the scanner. “I’m going in.”
“Southside of the building,” another responds.
An Open Letter to Virginia Beach First Responders
On May 31, 2019, evil took the lives of 12 innocent people, seriously injured 4 others and traumatized countless others in a senseless act of violence at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center. On behalf of the Board of Directors and Advisory Board of the Virginia Beach Police Foundation, we want to express our sincere sympathy to all of those impacted by this incident, including their families.
At the same time, we express our extreme pride, gratitude and amazement at the response to the mass shooting by the members of the Virginia Beach Police Department, as well as to the members of the Virginia Beach Fire Department, Virginia Beach EMS and Virginia Beach E-911 Center. Our police officers and tactical medics rushed towards the gunfire to protect others, and in doing so undoubtedly saved others from injury or death. That tragedy will not define our great City, yet your actions clearly define you. You each exemplify VB STRONG.
Even though we know from our long association with the Virginia Beach Police Department that its members routinely perform their duties with valor and heroism, we are in awe of your actions and heroics on that dark day. We are proud to stand beside you, and we are ready to assist you in any way possible as you work through the after effects of the horrors of that day and the trauma you experienced.
You are not alone. We have your back.
Linwood O. Branch, Jake Jacocks,
President Past-president
