Las Vegas Concertgoers Initially Believed Shots Were Fireworks
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LAS VEGAS (KDKA) - As the hours go by, more stories are emerging about what happened after more than 50 people were killed and hundreds were wounded in a mass shooting at a Las Vegas country music concert.
Shinnston, West Virginia native Courtney Robey was right beside the stage when shots rang out.
"I looked earlier, we took our last photo at 10:01, and it was shortly after that that the gunfire started," she said.
She estimated the crowd to be approximately 20,000 people. Like many in attendance, she thought she was hearing fireworks that were part of Jason Aldean's show.
"Because we were just to the left of the stage and because fireworks are often a part of a concert, the first couple of shots did sound like fireworks that maybe had just started a little early," Robey said.
But, she quickly realized the sounds heard above the noise of the concert were not part of any show.
"You could definitely tell it was an automatic rifle. It became very clear very quickly," she said.
They took cover under a section of bleachers where they huddled together to pray. After a few minutes, security moved them from that area and into the Tropicana hotel.
"We were in kind of a basement back area and there were quite a few people injured who had been shot. They were bringing in an ambulance and taking people to the hospital from there," Robey said.
With so many people in a congested section, Robey says she was impressed by the compassion of people.
"We also saw just saw a lot of just concertgoers who were there and as you were walking by they were reassuring people that 'You are OK. You're OK. Just keep going. Be careful. Don't push and shove.' But, we got out of there relatively easily," Robey said.