While one person carried out an act of horror, others stepped up to shed light on the darkness of the Manchester suicide bombing at Ariana Grande's concert.
Taxi driver Saf Ismail was among the many people who chose to open up the doors to their homes and cars to aid concertgoers in their time of need following the blast outside the Manchester Arena. The driver made three trips to Manchester Monday night, picking up 24 people in his van to get them to safety.
Ismail, a Pakistani Muslim who grew up in Manchester, told CBS News he saw so many people pouring out of the concert and he couldn't believe how young the victims were. He said they reminded him of his daughter, who could've been at the show.
"It was like seeing my daughter there. My daughter's 15, and she was going to go to the concert," Ismail said. "She was supposed to go, but she changed her mind a couple of months ago because she has exams coming up."
The people Ismail ended up driving home were not injured, but they were very emotional after witnessing the explosion.
"They weren't injured but they were crying, shouting, screaming — just basically, very emotional," Ismail said. "Your emotions are running so high it's like you're seeing your own flesh and blood walking."
There were 22 people killed and 59 wounded in the bombing.
Following the incident, local residents took to social media using the hashtag #roomformanchester to volunteer their homes for a place to stay.
Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham spoke highly of those who immediately acted to aid survivors Tuesday.
"They opened their doors to strangers and drove them away from danger," Burnham said in a press conference. "They gave the best possible immediate response to those who seek to divide us. And it will be that spirit of Manchester that will prevail and hold us together."
Comments
Post a Comment