ON a once quiet, suburban street in Gateshead - bullet holes, shattered glass and police tape remained in the wake of a violent shooting that has left neighbours paralysed with fear.
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Officers combed the front lawn of the fibro house on Flame Street for evidence on Thursday, searching for clues in the aftermath of an attack which left a 41-year-old man hospitalised with a gunshot wound to his leg.
Police were still searching on Thursday afternoon for those responsible for the shooting.
Neighbour, Dorothy Piggott remembers the street when it was full of children, where she raised her own and has lived for the past 60 years.
"I never heard a thing, now you just said they haven't caught the shooter, that's a bit scary," she said.
"It's all a bit overwhelming, I've got enough to worry about at the moment - I'm getting treated for cancer and that's where I've been this morning."
Police canvassed the street on Thursday, door-knocking for information about what may have happened in the early hours, shortly after 4am.
Long-term residents told the Newcastle Herald the house was no stranger to police, and multiple cars and people could be seen coming and going at all hours.
Out the front, the home was cordoned off with police tape while forensic teams took photographs and dusted the car in the driveway for fingerprints.
Two doors down, Darren Minns arrived after a distressed call from his elderly mother - who he cares for almost full time.
His mother was too shaken to speak to media, but Mr Minns said he felt he needed to speak up for the safety of residents in the street.
"I've had enough, my family have had enough, I put this fence around the front of Mum's house 12 months ago because it's getting that bad," he said.
"It's not good, there's kids in this street and there's people walking down off their faces yelling at each other and talking to themselves.
"I'd like to move her [his mother] back home to Belmont where I live, but the thing is that this is her home, she loves this place and I was brought up here as well."
Mr Minns said his mother heard a gunshot about 5am and had been disturbed by the drama unfolding in the street.
"Especially with people throwing guns around, that's a fear - what if the bloke targeted the wrong house and shot M?," he said.
"That's wrong. We have to do something about it. These are the issues we shouldn't have to put up with."
Police and paramedics were first called to the Flame Street address on reports shots had been fired just after 4am.
When they arrived they found a 41-year-old man had suffered a gunshot wound to his leg.
Two bullet holes show where the projectiles entered through the front window, striking the man before the unknown shooter fled the scene.
For a 17-year-old girl living alone down the street, news of the shooting has left her rattled, thankful to have had a friend staying the night.
"It's crazy, I heard the bang, we heard it and we looked at each other," she said.
"I didn't even want to move here, the carers moved me here and now to know that somebody has been shot in my street - it's not the greatest."
She described the street as quiet normally, bar for the odd argument in other houses, but said she's never heard such a loud bang.
"I only heard one," she said.
"I popped my head up and we looked at each other and said, 'what was that?' - we were looking out and nobody was out there, because we thought someone was out the front of our house."
The teenager said it took police about an hour to arrive, with multiple police cars and a van parked on the street.
Zelk Debeljak lives on the corner of Flame Street and Hickory Road, he said that in the three years he's lived there gun violence has never been a problem.
"I didn't hear anything, I didn't see anything - I came out here about 4:15am because I wake up early," he said.
"I saw the ambulance drive past and that's about it, it was just by chance that I saw the flashing lights, bar that I wouldn't know."
According to police, the man and his family were asleep at home when they were woken up by two loud noises.
His injuries aren't considered life-threatening, but he was treated by paramedics at the scene and taken to hospital for further medical care.
A crime scene has been established and police have launched an investigation into the incident, urging anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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Madeline Link
Madeline Link is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald, with a focus on Lake Macquarie City Council. To keep up with my stories, follow my Twitter @madeline_link, for tips email madeline.link@newcastleherald.com.au.
Madeline Link is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald, with a focus on Lake Macquarie City Council. To keep up with my stories, follow my Twitter @madeline_link, for tips email madeline.link@newcastleherald.com.au.
