KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Sixteen-year-old Kamari Brinson is one victim who is still healing more than a month after the shooting at the Chiefs victory rally.
Brinson was injured in the chaos after shots were fired. She fell while trying to run to safety and was trampled by crowds of other people also running.
“She’s a 16-year-old girl who didn’t get to enjoy her 16th birthday, and now she has nine months of trying to learn how to walk again,” Brinson’s mom, Jonnisha Washington, said.
Brinson was near the stage during the Chief’s victory rally. She remembers seeing celebratory confetti pop at the end of the rally, shortly after the scene went from a celebration to chaos and tragedy.
She and many others ran inside Union Station with others after shots were fired. While inside, Brinson said she heard more gunfire and saw people start to run again.
“Everybody in Union Station started running, so I started running, and then out of nowhere, I got trampled. People ran me over, and I fell down,” Brinson explained. “I got up, and then I went straight down. I couldn’t walk after that. So I just dragged myself under the table to be safe. I was scared. I didn’t know what was going on.”
Brinson’s injuries were more extensive than doctors initially thought. She tore her ACL and meniscus and also injured her MCL.
“She had to get two rods put in her knee, and the surgeon told us her recovery time is anywhere from 6 to 9 months,” Washington said. “So this is going to be a long road for her if she ever regains full motion of her knee.”
Since Feb. 14, Brinson has been busy with surgery and other doctor appointments.
During that time, she also turned 16.
“She’s so independent. So now she has to depend on us to help her get to the restroom, up and down stairs when it’s time for appointments, put on clothes and things like that,” Washington said. “So it’s a lot. It’s been a lot. It’s been very stressful on all of us, everyone in the house.“
Brinson’s parents say the past month has been difficult, and her road to recovering mentally and physically from the trauma will be a long one.
