Residents of Kenosha, Wisconsin woke up to destruction Tuesday after riots rocked the city. They quickly got to work, coming together to clean up and board up amid the unrest.
Rioters spread out across parts of Kenosha Monday evening, breaking into local businesses to loot and setting fires inside others. By the end of the evening, parts of Kenosha were up in flames. Smoke filled the air and fire officials were seen arriving from other countries in an effort to put out flames that ultimately caused buildings to crumble to the ground.
WATCH:
Here’s what is left of the local furniture store in Kenosha, WI pic.twitter.com/UupdMaZU6L
— Shelby Talcott (@ShelbyTalcott) August 25, 2020
Residents awoke Tuesday and left their homes to survey the damage, walking the streets and taking in the destruction. Multiple businesses had been burned to the ground and others were broken into and robbed.
The smell of smoke was still thick in the air in parts of Kenosha, but many residents did not appear to be deterred as they brought out brooms, scrub brushes, pressure washers and more to clean up. Locals spent nearly all day outside, picking up Kenosha and then boarding up local businesses in preparation for more unrest.
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More people helping with clean-up efforts in Kenosha this afternoon pic.twitter.com/A7osWyHbjI
— Shelby Talcott (@ShelbyTalcott) August 25, 2020
Another street in Kenosha was really hard hit by looting and fires. There’s a ton of people out helping to clean up pic.twitter.com/hlepM481Oj
— Shelby Talcott (@ShelbyTalcott) August 25, 2020
Some residents focused on helping friends who owned businesses that had been targeted in the riots. Others roamed the streets and asked strangers if they needed any help. The all-day affair saw members of the Wisconsin city come together, even after many lost businesses due to the unrest.
As the day wore on, one street saw two people handing out pizzas to local residents mid-clean up. A 15-year-old boy was among those helping, and he told the Caller that coming out to help was a no-brainer.
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Some people are passing around pizzas as locals clean up and board up in Kenosha pic.twitter.com/mSM2sJt8Vz
— Shelby Talcott (@ShelbyTalcott) August 25, 2020
“It’s really important ‘cuz there’s a lot of businesses up and down here, like shops that people shop at and stuff like that, so it’s very important to the community,” Matthew Stuart said. “Places I even shop, so I just thought, I mean, you really have to come out here.”
“It’s kind of hard just to sit at home and watch the news, and just watch everybody helping when you can just walk outside and do it yourself.” (RELATED: ‘We Need To Come Together’: Son Of The Owner Of Kenosha Furniture Store That Was Burned To The Ground Speaks Out)
Many residents worry that the rioting will continue, according to reporters on the ground. As Tuesday evening neared, most businesses had boarded up around the area hardest hit by the riots.
Unrest in Kenosha began Sunday evening after video footage appeared to show Jacob Blake being shot in the back by a police officer Sunday. Blake is partially paralyzed, according to his family, and people have taken to the streets for two nights in a row over the incident.