Relief is tinged with sadness as Maine residents resume activities after shooting suspect found dead
Richard Morlock, a member of the deaf community and surviver of the mass shooting at Schemengees Bar and Grille, pays his respect at a makeshift memorial to his friends he played cornhole with who were killed during the recent mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.
Richard Morlock, right, a member of the deaf community and surviver of the mass shooting at Schemengees Bar and Grille, embraces a person at a makeshift memorial in Lewiston, Maine, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.
At a makeshift memorial shows images of members of the deaf community who were killed in the mass shooting at Schemengees Bar and Grille in Lewiston, Maine, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.
A note showing support for the community a day after the body of Robert Card was found was left on a table in a cafe in Lewiston, Maine on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023. Card, a firearms instructor who grew up in the area, was found dead in nearby Lisbon Falls, Gov. Janet Mills said at a Friday night news conference.
A cafe shows its support for the community a day after the body of Robert Card was found Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023 in Lewiston, Maine. Card, a firearms instructor who grew up in the area, was found dead in nearby Lisbon Falls, Gov. Janet Mills said at a Friday night news conference.
People gather at a vigil in Lisbon Falls, Maine, for victims of the week's mass shootings, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.
LEWISTON, Maine (AP) 鈥� Sunshine and a sense of relief swept through central Maine on Saturday with word that a man who was on the loose for two days after authorities said he killed 18 people had been found dead.
Residents of Lewiston and surrounding towns had been told to stay home since Wednesday night, when authorities say Robert Card opened fire at a bowling alley and then a bar in shootings that also wounded 13 others. His body was found Friday at a recycling center in nearby Lisbon.
Released from lockdown, many residents headed outside to enjoy a warm autumn day.
鈥淲e can now begin to pick up the pieces, begin the grieving process,鈥� said Jim Howaniec, a Lewiston native who served as mayor in the early 1990s. 鈥淲e were sort of in limbo there for 48 hours, which really isn鈥檛 that long of a time, but of course it seemed like 48 years while it was going on.鈥�
Melissa Brown said sheltering in place reminded her of living in Washington, D.C., when snipers killed 10 people over a three-week span in October 2002.
鈥淭his situation brought that back up in our minds, and brought back all those traumatic feelings. And then we had traumatic feelings now for this new place that we call home,鈥� Brown said.
Getting out for a walk and a run Saturday morning felt good, she said.
鈥淲e just are really hoping to get back to being able to live without fear, but we still feel really awful for what happened,鈥� she said. 鈥淥ur hearts are heavy for everyone involved.鈥�
One family of four from southern Maine spent Saturday afternoon handing out flowers to strangers in downtown Lewiston. Some people they approached with the bright yellow and purple blooms politely declined. Others offered hugs.
鈥溾�滶ven if it鈥檚 just that one person who has a better day because of it, it鈥檚 all worth it,鈥� said Gabe Hirst, 21, of Gray.
Christal Pele, a local teacher who accepted a flower, said she isn鈥檛 sure how she will address the shootings with her students when classes resume. The tragedy has prompted many people to be more open and friendly with each other, she said, but a somber feeling lingers in the air.
鈥淲hen you鈥檙e out, you can just feel it,鈥� she said.
Echoing that undercurrent of sadness, someone scrawled two hearts and a message on a napkin and left it on a caf茅 table: 鈥淲e Love You Lewiston. It鈥檚 OK to not be OK.鈥�
While residents were relieved to be out and about, there was no snapping back to normal, particularly for those who lost loved ones or witnessed the shootings. An armory that was supposed to host a community Halloween celebration instead was turned into a family assistance center on Saturday.
Tammy Asselin was in the bowling alley Wednesday night with her 10-year-old daughter, Toni, and was injured when she fell in the scramble as the shooting began. On Saturday morning, she said she was relieved to hear that Card was dead but saddened at the lost opportunity to learn more.
鈥淣ow we are on the journey to heal, and I am looking forward to working on this,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t will be difficult but I鈥檓 optimistic we will be stronger in the long run.鈥�
In an earlier interview, Asselin said her daughter鈥檚 youth bowling league was supposed to have a Halloween party Saturday. Now, teammates and families are focused on supporting each other, she said.
鈥淲e want our kids to continue to be able to live their lives as normal as possible and to move forward,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e are all in the same place. We鈥檙e all making sure we get help for our children and help for ourselves.鈥�
As evening fell, about 150 people gathered with candles in a grassy field in Lisbon Falls, not far from where Card鈥檚 body was found. Joey Rossignol, who bought a home in Lisbon in March, said he had been too shocked to process the shooting in previous days but that it began to hit him at the vigil.
Rossignol, 45, said he lived in Boston during the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and that he never expected to have to go into a similar lockdown in his home state of Maine.
鈥淭his is kind of like that second wave,鈥� Rossignol said. 鈥淪hock, I guess, is where I鈥檓 at personally.鈥�
Earlier Saturday, near a makeshift memorial to the victims near the Lewiston bar, William Brackett Sr. said the anger that had consumed him since Wednesday was starting to lessen. His son, also named William, was among those killed.
鈥淚鈥檓 calming down a little bit today because I know the guy is gone and no longer a threat to anybody,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n the next couple days, I鈥檒l be partially back to myself. Not wholly, you never get whole. Never.鈥�
Ramer reporter from Concord, New Hampshire. Associated Press journalists Michelle R. Smith, David R. Martin and Robert Bumsted also contributed to this report from Lewiston.