‘I cannot just stay away’: Bystanders rush to help victim of fatal shooting
A man is dead after he was shot outside a townhouse complex on Caldwell Avenue in the city’s Carlington neighbourhood Wednesday afternoon.
The shooting occurred near 1500 Caldwell Ave. just before 3:30 p.m., and police confirmed they found the man outside the townhouse complex. He underwent “aggressive resuscitation” on the way to hospital, according to Ottawa paramedics.
Police later confirmed he died in hospital. The man has not been identified yet, according to Insp. John Medeiros.
Bystanders tried to help
Witnesses describe seeing people fleeing the scene and a small group trying to help the man. Among them was Fabien Kalala, who used to live in the area and was visiting relatives Wednesday afternoon.
Kalala’s three-year-old daughter was playing outside when he said he heard a burst of four gunshots. He brought her and other children to safety, then heard more gunfire and decided to intervene.
“I cannot just stay away, watching from far. That’s why I got involved,” he said.
Kalala said he saw a man conscious and bleeding on the ground.
“It was bloody for sure, but my first instinct was to keep the person alive and to try to put as much pressure — all my force —on his chest to keep the blood circulating in his body.”