- Caught up in a stampede of beachgoers
Former Fox Sports NRL reporter Tiffany Salmond has described the terrifying moment she fled when she found herself just metres from the gunmen who allegedly killed at least 16 people at Bondi Beach on Sunday.
Salmond, who was previously a sideline reporter at New Zealand Warriors games on Fox Sports before being axed by the broadcaster, now lives in Sydney where she is trying to revive her media career.
She was at Bondi on Sunday when two men, described by police as father and son, allegedly stood on a bridge near the northern end of the world-famous tourism destination and opened fire.
Another 40 people were injured, with five in hospital in critical condition.
The father was shot and killed by police. The son was also shot by officers, but is receiving treatment after being taken to hospital under guard.
Salmond was leaving Bondi at the same time the attack began and described the intense terror she felt when the cracks of the rifles began to sound.
Tiffany Salmond is pictured in a grab from a video she posted from Bondi Beach as she was trying to escape the massacre
The former footy reporter showed her followers how close she was to the two men who allegedly took 16 lives in the massacre (pictured)
Salmond was caught up in the panic as thousands of beachgoers ran for their lives
‘I was about 10 metres from the [alleged] shooters. Literally said goodbye to [an associate] and then the gunshots started going off,’ she told the Daily Mail.
‘Sprinted to the police station and hid there for a while with everyone. Home safe now though. Horrific.’
Speaking to Daily Mail on Monday, Salmond said her fear was compounded by not knowing where the alleged shooters were as she tried to escape the terrifying situation.
‘I didn’t know how close I was to the [alleged] shooters until I got home later and saw they were on the bridge that I was only about 20 metres from them,’ she said.
‘Running away from the gunshots was terrifying because I had no idea where they were coming from.
‘But I’m just devastated and heartbroken for the victims and their families and the Jewish community. It’s all so shocking.’
Salmond returned to Bondi Beach on Monday, where she spoke with Sunrise host Natalie Barr.
She described the confusion that rapidly turned to panic as thousands of beachgoers ran for their lives.
The ex-Fox Sports sideline eye said she had no idea where the gunshots were coming from as she ran for her life
Salmond and about 50 others crammed into the Bondi Police Station (pictured) to seek shelter
The death toll has risen to 16 with 40 or more injured, including five in critical condition in hospital (pictured, an injured beachgoer is treated by paramedics in Bondi)
‘[I heard] just a massive bang,’ Salmond said.
‘It sounded like a gunshot, but you don’t expect to hear a gun go off at Bondi Beach.
‘I was assuming it was a car backfiring, so I turned around and looked at the road assuming that’s what it was.
‘But then it went off again and I looked around and people were running and that was kind of the moment I knew it wasn’t a car, it was a gun going off.
‘That was a terrifying moment.
‘Everyone was running, it was like a stampede.
‘Everyone off the beach, the hills, everywhere, the footpath, everyone was running for their lives, literally.
‘And I just knew I needed to get away.’
Despite being so close to the alleged shooters, Salmond was running in a blind panic to get away from them.
One of the alleged shooters was stationed on a bridge just 20 metres from where Salmond was standing
‘All I could think of in my head while I was running was “someone’s walking through the crowd with a gun” and I just knew I needed to get away,’ she said.
‘So I was just sprinting, I had no idea where I was going, I ran right down the road, dodged cars across the road, I wasn’t waiting for the lights.
‘I was about to run into a restaurant that was holding its doors open for people and then I saw the police station and I thought, that makes sense.
‘I ran in there and they were allowing people to come in, into their back office and take coverage.’
Salmond praised the bravery of the lone police officer on duty at the Bondi station, who herded people into a back office to protect them.
‘I would say there was about 50 of us, in their office, they locked their door,’ she said.
‘There was only one policewoman and she didn’t know what was going on, no one knew what was going on.
‘We were probably in there for about 20 minutes, until she had finally heard what had happened and that it was safe for us to leave.’
Salmond also described the heroism on display from police officers as they arrived and headed straight into the danger zone to confront the alleged shooters.
‘I remember just feeling terrified for them. Like here we were, running for our lives, scared, and they were having to make their way towards the danger, not even knowing what was going on, just like us, and I was scared for them, to be honest,’ she told the New Zealand Herald.
‘It’s shocking to wake up this morning and see the death toll rising, although we were told to expect it to rise.
‘It was a really hot day yesterday … so a lot of people were making use of the warm weather, which is just horrifying that it just happened to be, unfortunately, such a busy day down there.’