Orlando in Holy Shit!

It’s so sad to hear the breaking news about the shooting at Pulse in Orlando. A friend seems to think it’s a hate-crime, but the media are labelling it a terrorist attack.

But fuck, how terrifying for those patrons. 2am, probably very loud music, strobe lights, maybe a fog-machine, and some fucker waltzes on it and shoots dead 20 people and injures 46 (I think they said it was).

It’s hard to hear info on it here as it’s late at night on a Sunday, but it’s all over my Facebook gay media pages I follow. I switched the TV on to ABC News 24 to try and hear details and they mentioned it had occurred but not what the latest was.
I’ve read one report that the gunman has been killed. Another report said he’d taken two hostages.
I don’t know what to believe.

I could go into another spiel about my views on ‘Murica’s gun laws, but I’m already a broken record on that topic.
We had a gunman/hostage situation in our Lindt cafe siege here last year, so my country’s strict gun laws aren’t perfect either.

I’m a bit worried though because, uncannily, two of my relatives happen to be in Orlando at the moment. They only flew in within the past 24 hours according to their posts. One is my Aunty, who is there with her daughter (my cousin) for the ‘Miss World Fitness’ competition. She got 2nd btw!

I think they will be okay. It’s my other cousin Zac whom I’m concerned about. He’s gay and there’s a slight possibility that he could have been at that nightclub, but I’m really not sure. I sent him a Facebook message asking if he’s alright, but he was last active hours ago.

I’m sure he’s okay, but why does this shit have to happen? I was in Europe when the Paris attacks happened (I was headed there two days after), my parents were there when Brussels was bombed, and now two sets of cousins are in bloody Orlando.

RIP to all those innocent people :(

Edit:. He’s okay. He was just waking up to the news over there. He messaged back saying “Thank goodness my friend isn’t much of a going out person.”

Last updated June 12, 2016