Bondi beach terror attack on Jewish festival: Co Donegal man Nathan Gallagher helps rescue six people
A Co Donegal man has told how he helped save several people from the mass shooting on Bondi Beach on Sunday.
Nathan Gallagher, originally from Burtonport, was on a boat off Bondi Beach tagging sharks for a government programme when he heard gunshots.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio 1’s Liveline, Mr Gallagher, who is also a reality TV star known for starring on Below Deck Mediterranean, said he initially thought he heard fireworks.
"When I realised it was gunshots, I said to the boys: ‘Stop what you're doing. We're going in to see if we can save some people here’. So we immediately stopped and went full steam ahead to the shore."
People who were already in the water were panicking so he called them to come to the boat.
"I’ve seen people running on the beach," he said. "They're going left and right. There were a lot of surfers in the water. People are lying down behind the lifeguard's buggy. It was a sight that will never be forgotten, that's for sure.”
Mr Gallagher said he was “scared”, and so were his friends.
“We were ducking behind the cabin. So it was quite scary, but I wanted to do this, get in there and see how many people we could get on the boat and get to safety so that they can get back to their loved ones for Christmas and the New Year," he said.
The group was able to save six or seven people,
As soon as they were on board he lent them his phone to call loved ones and assure them they were safe, he added.