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West Atlanta room hit by gunfire
Bullets pierced a bedroom ceiling and struck a dresser inside a West Atlanta apartment twice in one month, according to an Atlanta Housing statement.
ATLANTA - A West Atlanta woman and military veteran says she no longer feels safe living in her public housing apartment after repeated gunfire pierced her children's bedroom ceiling and left her family traumatized. Brandi Forte recently vacated her home out of fear and is now staying with friends while desperately searching for a safe environment for her children.
What we know:
An Atlanta woman and military veteran says she no longer feels safe living in her public housing apartment after bullets pierced her children's bedroom ceiling.
Brandi Forte, who has lived in the West Atlanta complex with her children for about three years, is now staying with friends and searching for a new home after the gunfire left her family shaken. According to Forte, the living situation was fine initially, but conditions recently changed.
The first incident occurred last month at approximately 9:30 a.m. while the family was asleep. A bullet traveled through the ceiling of her children's bedroom, struck a dresser, and passed through the furniture. Forte immediately rushed to get her children out of the apartment. Following the gunfire, Forte filed a police report and vacated the apartment for a few days.
A little more than a week later, a second round of gunfire awoke Forte while she was sleeping. After noticing gun smoke coming from the upstairs window of the unit above her, she again gathered her children and left the property out of fear.
Forte has since obtained a new housing voucher and is actively attempting to relocate her family to a different apartment, though she reports the search has been a struggle. In the interim, she and her children are residing with friends.
What they're saying:
Forte, a military veteran, recalled her immediate reaction to the first shooting incident last month.
"My children were in their room sleep, I was in my sleep room. It was 9:30 a.m. and I heard a huge gunshot. I’m a veteran, so I immediately knew what it was, but it sounded close like in my unit," Forte said.
Following the initial gunfire, Forte stated that her upstairs neighbor came downstairs to apologize for the incident.
"'The gun just went off, da dada.' I'm like, ‘What do you mean, the gun just went off?’" Forte said.
When the second shooting occurred just over a week later, Forte described seeing evidence of the gunfire right outside.
"I didn’t know (whether the gunshots were coming from) outside or inside, but I looked and saw gun smoke coming from the upstairs window of the unit," Forte said.
Forte explained that the repeated gunfire has severely impacted her peace of mind and triggered memories from her military service.
"As military veteran, it's triggering the things I have endured at that unit and just trying to stay out of the way," Forte said.
The trauma of the incidents has also affected her children's well-being and heightened their sensitivity to loud noises.
"The other day, I walked into the room my children are staying in at my friends. I kicked a toy over and my son jumped out of his sleep frantic," Forte said.
Forte is now focused on utilizing her new housing voucher to secure a permanent, secure residence for her family.
"Somewhere new to stay as soon as possible that is in a safe environment for my children," Forte said.
The other side:
FOX 5 reached out to Atlanta Housing about the story. They sent the statement below:
"Atlanta Housing prioritizes the safety and well-being of all residents. Through ongoing engagement and resources, including bimonthly landlord housing fairs that connect voucher holders with available units, we work to ensure residents have the support they need. Following the incident in May, the resident was issued a new voucher under an emergency move agreement and assigned a housing counselor to support her transition.
Atlanta Housing provides voucher participants with access to a range of housing options while empowering them to choose what best fits their needs. Last week, the resident met with a housing counselor and was provided a list of suitable and available units for her household. We will continue working closely with the resident to ensure she feels safe and supported as she secures new housing."
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Brandi Forte, who explained how the shootings impacted her family and shared her personal recollections of the events, as well as a written statement provided by Atlanta Housing.