CLEVELAND — Two members of the Cleveland Division of Police who responded to the West 6th Street mass shooting are sharing their reflections on the tragic event that wounded nine people, even sharing how they had to be resourceful as they saved lives.
It was about 2:30 a.m. on July 9th when alleged gunman Jaylon Jennings injured nine people outside a bar on West 6th St. and Johnson Court.
Just a block away on West 6th Street and Saint Clair Avenue. were Cleveland police patrol partners, Jonnatan Sanchez and Wanda Wright, who heard the gunfire and ran to investigate.
“As we were going to the scene, there were a lot of people running towards us, as we're running towards where we thought the gunfire was coming from," Wright described. "A lot of people screaming and yelling, people crying. A lot of people laying by the sidewalk because they were injured and hit by the gunfire.”
After they couldn't find any suspects, Sanchez said they began giving first aid.
He told 3News about how he had to get resourceful to help a woman suffering with gunshot wounds in her legs.
"I just kind of improvised," he explained. "I saw a gentleman that was standing next to the female victim that was laying on the ground. He had a belt on, and I was like, 'I'm gonna need that, can you please give me your belt? He gave me his belt and I kind of used it as a tourniquet, as an impromptu tourniquet on the female to try to slow the bleeding down from her legs.”
Sanchez said it was a critical decision due to how much he was bleeding.
“I did everything I could at the time,” he reflected.
The patrol partners said they gave aid to about five people each, calling it a night of work they'll never forget.