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Police respond to report of gunshots in Courtenay second day in a row

‘Bullets are flying in our tiny little neighbourhood’ says neighbour
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Comox Valley RCMP officer place evidence markers in an alley near 10th Street and Piercy Avenue in Courtenay early Monday morning. Photo by Erin Haluschak

One day after police investigated a shooting near two Cumberland Road businesses, there are reports of more gunplay in Courtenay.

Comox Valley RCMP responded to a reported second incident of gunfire in an alleyway near 10th Street and Piercy Avenue around 7:45 a.m. Monday morning.

“I was laying in bed and it was time to get up and I heard a series of gunshots. And then my son came in and said ‘is that a gun?’,” said Diane Brussell, who lives nearby. “It doesn’t feel good - especially to our kids.”

ALSO: Police believe early morning shooting at Courtenay coffee shop ‘not a random incident’

Another neighbour who asked not to be identified said the two nearby incidents seem “unbelievable to Courtenay.”

“This is so new and so scary. We’ve had the odd gunshot here and there. However, this is ongoing - almost daily. As far as the activity, now I would say two days in a row, bullets are flying in our tiny little neighbourhood,” she noted.

“I’m feeling very scared. Who wouldn’t be scared of a gun?”

Police are currently on scene and are collecting evidence. One day earlier, multiple shots were fired early at a popular coffee shop and an adjacent building at 950 Cumberland Road.

Mary Lee, communications and community engagement manager for the Comox Valley School District confirmed five schools within the district were instructed to implement a Hold and Secure Monday morning - Nala’atsi, Courtenay Elementary, Lake Trail Middle, Ecole Puntledge Park, and Arden Elementary as well as the board office - due to an armed event underway in west Courtenay.

“At approximately 9 a.m. the RCMP advised Comox Valley Schools that the emergency measure could be lifted. All schools are operating normally and we will continue to monitor the situation and stay in communication with RCMP,” she noted in a release.

During a Hold and Secure, staff and students are safe within the facility and classroom instruction continues as normal, she added. Exterior doors are locked restricting access to the building.



erin.haluschak@comoxvalleyrecord.com

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