‘It’s a million emotions’
Neighbor ‘in disbelief’ over attack
Justin Matase of Pittsburgh lives on Wilkins Avenue, just steps away from the Tree of Life Synagogue. He was arriving home yesterday morning just as the shooting unfolded. Matase shared his experience with Herald reporter Alexi Cohan:
“I was running home from the business district and I was traveling down Shady Avenue and then I saw there were so many police cars and emergency medical vehicles and they were diverting traffic. It went from curiosity to concern pretty quickly, I’ve never seen that many people, emergency medical vehicles and police. I flipped on my police scanner and listened in so that’s why I was tweeting and sharing information.”
Matase said he waited in his car until the scene was clear while he continued to listen to the police scanner.
“I was in disbelief. You don't think things like that happen in Pittsburgh; it’s scary, it’s unsettling, and it’s a million emotions . ... It’s incredibly disturbing and upsetting.”
Matase said he was ordered by police to stay in his home.
“I think you start to process what actually happened. First there’s this initial feeling where you're dealing with what’s happening, and listening to the scanner was really wild because you’re hearing the gun shots happening . ... Now that they’ve apprehended the guy, you can start to process the sadness and anger with the loss.”
Matase said that although he is not a member of Tree of Life Synagogue, he is active in the community and volunteers at the neighborhood’s Jewish community center.
“Pittsburgh always comes together and we’ll do anything we can in the community to facilitate that . ... It’s a sad thought but security is really important but I think it needs to be addressed across all places.”