Victims, families come to terms with Burkina Faso hotel attack

BURKINA FASO -- At least 28 people were killed on Friday when gunmen opened fire in a hotel and café in the West African country of Burkina Faso.

As security forces surrounded the Splendid Hotel and neighboring Cappuccino Café -- both under siege by terrorists -- Amy Riddering tried desperately to reach her husband Mike.

He was at the café when the assault began Friday night.

"I still have no news about Mike," she wrote on her Facebook page Saturday morning.

Florida-native Mike Riddering moved with his wife Amy and two daughters to Burkina Faso in 2011 to start an orphanage. Mike and a pastor were at the café in the country's capital Ouagadougou to meet new volunteers. The pastor later called Amy after escaping.

"Gunmen came into the restaurant shooting and everyone ran to hide. [The] pastor somehow had Mike's phone and called," wrote Amy. It was still unclear if Mike survived.

Another American, Edward Bunker, emerged from his room to a deserted hotel lobby and realized something was wrong.

"I saw cars on fire and a gunman and I realized I had to hide," he said.

The 12-hour siege began when heavily armed al Qaeda militants, two of them women, stormed the buildings and set off car bombs. In all, 28 people were killed, including a Canadian family of four who were on a humanitarian trip.

Edward Bunker, and 11 other Americans, made it out alive. Mike Riddering did not make it out alive.

"You left quite a legacy here. I can only imagine the adventures you're having now," read Amy's final post.