Life After Surviving the Deadliest Shooting in US History
Chelsea Garcia woke up drenched in sweat. She had a nightmare, again. She wished this recurring nightmare was just a dream. But it was horrible memories being replayed relentlessly. Everytime Garcia closes her eyes the memories from the Las Vegas massacre plagued her mind. Her life has changed immensely. Everywhere she goes she feels paranoid. She has forgotten what security felt like.
Garcia used to love school. She always looked forward to her sociology classes full of lively conversations and symbolism. However, what she looked forward to the most was meeting her friends during her breaks. But after that night everything changed. Every morning she wakes up and has to evaluate herself. Does she feels strong enough to face the world or does she need the protection of her home to settle her nerves? She no longer can go out in public without this sensation of paranoia engulfing her body. The unimaginable carnage of the deadliest shooting in US history is still fresh in her mind. The Las Vegas shooting plagues her.
“I thought I was going to die,” Chelsea Garcia said, “I didn’t think I was going to make it home.”
It was like yesterday. Jason Aldean’s stage presence mixed with the shining lights and blaring music made the crowd go wild. The audience is loving every moment of it dancing to the beat and the pops of the fireworks. Garcia noticed one festivalgoer nodding his head along to the music, but once a pop from the fireworks went off he hit the floor lifeless. Her mind froze, but her body reacted. The adrenaline was pumping as she headed straight towards her parents.
A gunman had opened fire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay onto the unsuspecting Route 91 festival goers. Relentless gunfire was raining over the crowd as chaos ensued.
Garcia vividly remembers running for her life. Since then Garcia wears that purple wristband as a memento and symbol.
“It kind of represents the strength that we all had to get out of there,” Garcia said, “but it also is a reminder that I was lucky enough to make it out alive when other people weren’t."
She has tried to move on in her life. She went from being a survivor back to her daily routine. All seemed well, except it wasn’t. No matter how hard she tried, the whole ordeal haunts her. Everyday life became a hassle. Closing her eyes lead to flashbacks of that tragic event. Her life was drastically changing.
Then she attended a Route 91 community event meeting other Route 91 survivors just like her. There were dozens of families of survivors and victims there to support one another. For a moment a sense of safety and belonging enveloped her. She hasn’t felt like this in a long time. For the first time in a long time, she opened up and reached out for help. Her new Route 91 “family” understood her fears and frustrations. Garcia finally decided that she had enough.
Even though many showed love on social media and a disgust with the types of guns the Las Vegas shooter, Stephen Paddock, used nothing was being done.
Garcia wanted to make a change in not only her life, but everyone else’s. Every year there is another mass shooting that is worse than the last one. After experiencing such a tragic event first hand, she never wants anyone to go through that again.
Garcia turned to Facebook to advocate for a change on gun control laws and show others ways to support the victims.
According to the Washington Post, around 500 people are still recovering from injuries, not including those injured by the chaos. With her voice Garcia has been able to financially support a mother who was injured in the shooting and that is just the start.
Today Garcia is finishing up her senior year. Although balancing such a traumatic event and school has been hard the support from her peers and professors have helped her a lot. Garcia shared that opening up to others for help really helped her move on with her life. She hopes to help as many victims of the Las Vegas massacre as she can.
Washington Post:
Mandalay Bay where the shooter resided
The route Garcia took to escape
Wreckage left after the massacre