'Place is like a ghost town': Large swath of downtown Dallas cordoned off as crime scene

A large swath of the normally busy downtown core of Dallas was virtually deserted on Friday, save for law enforcement officials who had cordoned off the area to investigate the fatal shootings of fivecity police officers.

"This place is like a ghost town," remarked one police officer, comparing it to a normal Friday afternoon.

He wasone of dozens stationed at aseries of intersections blocked off by yellow police tapethat leadinto the four orfive blocks of city streets that have been designated an active crime scene.

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Inside that zone, along with the investigators who continue to search the area, satscores of cars.Their owners cannot move themuntil the scene is cleared, which some officials predicted may not happen until Wednesday.

"Everythingis in my car. My life is in my car," saidDee Akeju, whose car sat in a parking lot.

Looming within the sealed-off area isthe parking garage near El CentroCollege,where Micah Johnson,the shooter, unleashed from abovehis deadly ambush, which alsowounded seven police officers and two civilians.

Earlier, just a few blocks away atThanks-Giving Square in downtown Dallas,a respite foroffice workers grabbing a lunch break,became an impromptu vigil sitewhere hundreds gathered to show support for the slain officers.

"I come here every day," said Lisa Bishop, who works nearby. "[Dallas] is my home. You have to come here and support your people."

"It's senseless," she said of the shootings. "We need to come together and help heal everybody."

While the crime scene is offlimits to everyone but investigators,Thanks-Giving Squarewas open to the public and becamea rallying spot for top city officials and religious leaders.

Theyspokeof thebroken hearts of a grieving city but also issueda plea, a call to action to deal withthe racial strife plaguing the nation.

'So much emotion'

"I almostdidn't come outof fear because so much emotion was running," saidDallas residentPhallonWright. "I'm sogratefulthat I did because it lifted my spirits."

The shooting in Dallas occurred aspeople gathered in the streets to protest the fatal police shootings of two black men this week,

AltonSterling, 37, out front of aconvenience store inBaton Rouge, La., early Tuesday, andPhilando Castile, 32, inside a car in Falcon Heights, Minn., on Wednesday.Both shootings were captured on video and both inflamed racial tensions across the nation.

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Police say the Dallas gunman, who was killed by a robot armed with a bomb, had declared he wanted "to kill white people, especially white police officers." Three other suspects were taken into custody.

The attack took place only a few blocks from Dealey Plaza, where U.S. president John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings couldn't help but refertothat event, which for years cast a dark cloudover the city.

"Those of us who loved this city always knew there was so much more to Dallas than what happened on that day in 1963," he said.

But now there is another defining tragedy, the deadliest attack on law enforcement in the city's history, and the deadliest day for law enforcement in the U.S. since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

Yet Rawlingssaid he believed some good would comeout of the tragedy, saying citizens would not shyaway "from the veryrealfactthatwe as a city, as a state,as a nation arestrugglingwith racial issues.They continue todivideus."

"Wegottachange," he said. "We muststep up our game andapproachcomplicated issues in a different way. And race is complicated."

He asked whether the peoplecan speak against the actions of relatively few police officers who blemish the reputation of their colleagues andsupport and defend the 99 per cent of officers who do their jobs professionally.

"I think we can and I think we must," he said

'Evil plan'

Pastor Brian Carter spoke about the community'sdeep pain, but he also elicited rousing applause when he declared: "We refuse to hate each other."

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But the most passionateresponse was reserved for Dallas Police Chief David Brown, who thanked the many well-wishers.

He referred briefly to the sniper attack, sayingit was a well-organizedevil plan and that police won't rest until everyone involved is brought to justice.

But he also vowed the city is determined not to let those responsible "steal democracy from us."

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