Calm after the storm in Merseyside's tinderbox after seven shootings in six months How calm has been restored in what appeared to be Merseyside Police's most volatile patch just 12 months ago Updated Police incident Chesterfield Drive, Kirkby. Photograph Geoff Davies (Image: Geoff Davies) Twelve months have passed since the last shooting in Kirkby, sparking hope the tables are turning in the town's fight against crime. The period of calm represents a significant turnaround in an area that was the scene of flashpoints of severe violence during the later part of 2019 and early stages of 2020. Detectives believe the success is the result of tactics that have placed those worst hit by the chaos at the heart of the fightback.