More people could have died in Saturday's deadly shooting rampage in Winthrop, Massachusetts, which started when the gunman drove a truck stolen from a plumbing company into a building.
That building is an office, and a man who rents the space said Sunday that, if it were any other day of the week, he, his partner and their families might have been killed.
All that’s left of the building the corner of Cross and Shirley streets is a pile of rubble.
“It’s extremely hard to look at,” said Brian Marks, who has owned the building at for more than six years.
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His company has its own fleet of box trucks, Marks said. “He had to have been going extremely fast and never hit his brakes, and just demolished the entire building.”
What’s worse for Marks than the damage that was done is the thought of what could’ve happened to the two men who have rented his building as their office for the last five years.
“It was very scary, knowing they could’ve been there with their young kids, and thank gosh they weren’t there,” he said.
PHOTOS: Police, Rescue Response to Winthrop Shooting
Michael Ferrara and his partner at M and P Realty said they’re in the office all day, five days a week, sitting in the same spot where that speeding truck came barreling in
“It’s tough to see this happen, something like this happen somewhere you spend so much time,” Ferrara said.
The partners were able to visit the building afterward, but most of it was unsalvageable. Ferrara was able to save a hard drive, part of a computer and a picture of his son.
“They have young kids,” Marks said. “They’re always around, the kids come in to use the bathroom. It was more pure luck that they weren’t there.”
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While the three men say they’re grateful their families are safe, they can’t help but think about the innocent bystanders caught up in one man’s murderous rampage, who were identified Sunday as an Air Force veteran and retired Massachusetts police trooper who lived in the area.
“It’s just surreal,” Marks said. “I’ve lived in Winthrop for 36 years and nothing like this ever happens, so to have something like this happen, it’s just shocking.”
The shooting is being investigated as a hate crime, authorities said, with investigators uncovering a history of racist and white supremacist rhetoric being made by the gunman.
Marks said he plans to work with the insurance company and come up with a plan to rebuild.
What We Know About the Winthrop Shooting
Two people were killed in a shooting rampage in Winthrop Saturday, including a retired Massachusetts State Trooper.
