A number of Brits have revealed how they had to hide in fear whilst gunshots echoed through Krakow during the weekend’s harrowing shooting.
What was supposed to be a romantic city break away turned into a real-life nightmare.
A mass shooting took place in the historic Market Square of the beloved city on 7 Nov, leaving six people dead and 16 others injured.
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The gunshots left people running for their lives hiding in pubs and shops for hours.
Bethany Campbell, 21, had jetted abroad with her boyfriend and were walking through the city when the shots started to go off.
“When we heard the gunshot all we could see was the fear in everyone’s faces running for their lives,” Bethany, from Glasgow, told Need To Know.
“We were hiding with another six people.
“It was our first full day and we were exploring Krakow, we decided to go to the shopping centre just 15 minutes from the square.
“We were about to stay for another 10-15 minutes but decided just to head back as we wanted to do more things in the square.
“If we decided to stay at the shopping centre that little bit longer it could’ve been us.
“When it happened we were in a shop about to walk out when a giant crowd of people started running and crying then all we heard was a gunshot.
“We all ran into the back of the shop and the lady let us stay there until we knew more information.
“Truly the scariest moment of our lives.”
Bethany, an optical assistant, had travelled over with her boyfriend Jamie.
They were not the only couple caught up in the horrific shooting.
Content creator and beauty therapist Becky Louise, 23, was in Krakow with her boyfriend, her sister and her sister’s partner.
The group were leaving a shop when they heard sirens before police cars and ambulances zoomed past them.
Suddenly she spotted a man on the floor with paramedics attempting CPR – before noticing bullet holes in the shop’s windows.
“We were in a shop and heard lots of sirens and came out to see police cars and ambulances everywhere,” Becky, from Essex, told Need To Know.
“The air ambulance was landing, we then saw a man on the floor with people and ambulance surrounding him.
“More victims were on the floor with people giving them CPR, there were bullet holes in the shop window and then we ran into a pub.
“I have never been so scared in my life, my whole body was shaking.
“Everyone in the pub was so scared we stayed in there for four hours until my sister’s boyfriend spoke to the police to see if it was safe for us to leave and go back to the hotel.
“My heart and prayers go out to all of those and their families affected by this.
“I’m a mum and all I could think about at that moment was getting home safely to my babies.”
Olivia Jurkiewicz, from Kent, was spending the day in the city exploring different spots before noticing a Christmas shop.
The festive scene drew her in before fear struck as the gunshots began echoing around them.
Shoppers cowered inside as the owner locked up the doors and switched the lights off.
Footage captured by the Brit shows the terrified people hiding in the dark.
She said: “I went to Krakow and was exploring a Christmas shop on the square when someone started shooting at random people.
“We had to hide in the shop.”
Around 3pm the shooter drove his black vehicle onto the square before firing shots from his window.
Armed police quickly engaged with him leading to a short car chase.
The suspect went under a number of operations on 9 Nov but died from his gunshot wounds in hospital.
The shooting claimed the lives of six people – a 32-year-old Brit man, a 51-year-old Austrian woman and four Polish nationals – three women aged 47, 50 and 61 and one 50-year-old man.
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