ORLANDO, Fla. — Surveillance video shows the moment when sightseers were frightened by sounds they believed were gunshots and made a run for it, starting a chain reaction at the Lake Eola fireworks show on Monday.
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“The people who attended our event were in a totally different mindset than people who attended other events,” Orlando police Chief Orlando Rolon said.
Psychiatrist Dr. Syed Quadri agrees.
“Fear factor has worsened in 2022,” Quadri said.
READ: Orlando police looking to gather more footage, information from Lake Eola fireworks scare
It was only intensified by the deadly Fourth of July shooting hours earlier in the Chicago area. Seven people were killed.
Quadri said mass shootings seem to be happening more often and people are not taking any chances.
WATCH: Video shows moments before crowd runs from Lake Eola fireworks show
“It’s the fight or flight people do not want to do. Impulsivity is something that takes over,” Quadri said.
People dropped and left everything after they thought their lives were at risk.
READ: ‘People were getting trampled’: Hundreds run from Lake Eola fireworks show after ‘noise’ scare
Police want to speak to anyone who was in the area near the Waverly and TD Bank.
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