NFL stars had been pressured to cower in closets through the mass taking pictures on the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade.
Gunfire despatched followers scrambling for canopy and left 21 folks wounded and one girl useless. At least eight youngsters are amongst those that had been shot within the Missouri metropolis.
Three folks had been detained and firearms had been recovered, police confirmed. No Chiefs gamers and employees had been among the many injured, which occurred on the finish of the celebration, held close to Union Station.
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However, gamers needed to be ushered by safety by security as panic set in. Starting proper guard Trey Smith advised Good Morning America: “The day began identical to final yr’s parade. I simply bear in mind the safety guards ushering us via the door rapidly, like ‘hurry up, hurry up, hurry up’. It’s [like], ‘okay, this is not a joke… this is a life or death situation’.”
As Smith went to hide with others, he scooped up a child. He added: “Right before I ran in there, there was a little kid in front of me so I just grabbed him and yanked him in, ‘you’re hopping in there with me, buddy’. I don’t know how many people there were in the closet, maybe 20 plus?
“One of my team-mates, my lengthy snapper James Winchester, was very instrumental in serving to maintain folks calm. We find yourself getting the inexperienced mild to have the ability to get out of there. We find yourself strolling to the buses.”
In a heart-warming gesture, Smith gave the mock WWE belt he had through the parade to the kid.
(Image: Ryan Kang/Getty Images)
“I had the WWE belt on me the entire parade,” he mentioned. “I was thinking, ‘what can I do to help him out?’ I just handed him the belt [and said], ‘hey, you’re the champion. No-one’s gonna hurt you man, we got your back’.
“We just start talking about wrestling [asking], ‘who’s your favourite wrestler, what’s your favourite wrestling match’. He was looking out the window and seeing people reacting, trying to get out of that situation, so I just said, ‘here you go buddy, this is yours’.”
Following yet one more mass taking pictures within the nation, Smith added: “I’m pretty angry, it’s senseless violence. Children were injured, children were traumatised. I’m hurting for the families and the people impacted, and the city of Kansas City.
“Hearts go out to the guys, we’re thinking and praying for you. But at the end of the day, we’re going to stand up together and we’re going to be strong.”