As the sickening sound of gunshots echoed through a Prague university this afternoon, terrified students and professors were forced to resort to extreme measures in order to try and survive.
At least 15 people were killed and 24 injured in the devastating mass shooting which was carried out by a lone gunman at the Charles University Faculty of Arts – where the 24-year-old suspect was a student himself – at around 3pm this afternoon.
Dramatic footage from the attack shows how desperate students and teachers clinged on to narrow ledges 40ft up, locked themselves in classrooms and built barricades with furniture as the sound of gunshots kept coming.
Police in Prague confirmed this afternoon that the gunman took his own life, while his father was also found dead. A chilling image shared on local media purports to show the man dressed in black aiming a rifle at people below while standing on top of a faculty building.
In the aftermath of the attack, students began to provide an insight into how they tried to survive.
One extraordinary image shows a group of nine students cowering on a ledge and clinging on for their lives in a bid to hide from the gunman, who was said to be picking off his victims one by one.
This extraordinary photo shows terrified students cowering on a ledge high up on a faculty in a bid to hide from the gunman
Another student shared how students barricaded themselves into classrooms using tables and chairs
A lone student is seen calling for help as he balances on a ledge. He then tiptoes around the corner
A lone student was also seen risking his life by tiptoeing across a narrow ledge and calling for help as dozens of police cars arrived at the scene below him. A second student around the corner is then seen jumping back into the building through the window.
Another photo shows how students locked themselves in a classroom and used several chairs and tables to prevent the gunman from entering.
The student who posted the photo wrote: ‘Currently stuck inside my classroom in Prague. Shooter is dead, but we are waiting to be evacuated. Praying to make it out alive. Locked the door before the shooter tried to open it. F***ing hell.’
Footage taken from inside one of the classrooms shows how a large group of students were sat in complete silence, with the only sound in the video a single gunshot.
Other remarkable footage shows terrified crowds of tourists and locals sprinting across the famous Charles Bridge – one of Europe’s top tourist sites – after the gunman opened fire in a sickening broad daylight attack.
Huge groups of people had to shuffle down the steps of the bridge as they tried to piece together what was going on.
Elsewhere, people sprinted for their lives with their hands in the air as armed police officers descended on the scene and halted the attack.
And a group of students were pictured hiding out in a computer lab where they were relying on information from their phones for the latest updates.
The student who posted the photo wrote: ‘I am OK. I was in the library at the time of the shooting. They sent us to the back of the computer lab where there are no windows. Word has now spread that the gunman is dead. We all call and reply to family and friends that we are ok.’
Images circulating online and in Czech media purports to show the shooter on the roof of the university building
Footage from inside this classroom shows students sitting in silence before a single gunshot is heard
One student, Deda Mrazek, said she was in the university’s library when the gunman began shooting at his victims. Sharing a picture of students hiding in the back of a computer lab, Deda wrote: ‘I am OK. I was in the library at the time of the shooting’
People can be seen running from a building in Prague with their arms up in the air as police descended on the scene
Dramatic video shows terrified crowds of tourists and locals sprinting across the famous Charles Bridge – one of Europe’s top tourist sites – after they heard the sickening sound of gunshots in the city
A man is seen sprinting through central Prague, while a group of students are seen hiding out on the ledge in the background
Petr Nedoma, director of the Rudolfinum Gallery at a concert hall across Palach Square, told Czech TV he saw the shooter.
‘I saw a young person on the gallery who had some weapon in his hand, like and automatic weapon, and shooting toward the Manes Bridge. Repeatedly, with some interruptions, then I saw as he shot, put hands up and threw the weapon down on the street, it lay there on the pedestrian crossing,’ he said.
Police sealed off the square and the area adjacent to the building, located in a busy part of town that has a popular street leading tourists to Old Town Square.
Czech TV live broadcast showed several ambulances and police cars with flashing lights lined up alongside the building accompanied by the sound of sirens.
One witness told news website iDnes.cz that they got off at the tram stop by the school and ‘suddenly I heard shooting’.
Klara, a student, told the news website she was among those who police evacuated from the building.
‘It was terribly scary, there were a lot of policemen everywhere, who were shouting at us with submachine guns, telling us to run outside,’ she said.
An email sent to staff and students had said the shooter was in one of the buildings.
‘Don’t go anywhere, if you’re in the offices, lock them and place furniture in front of the door, turn off the lights,’ the email said.
A newlywed British couple have also told of the moment a police officer ordered them to stay down during the central Prague shooting.
Tom Leese, 34, a video producer and his wife Rachael, 31, an account director, who are on their honeymoon in the country, were having a drink in the Slivovitz Museum, close to where the shooting occurred.
Armed police are seen on the balcony of the university in central Prague on Thursday
Medics wait near the building of Philosophical Faculty of Charles University in downtown Prague on Thursday
Members of the emergency service at the scene of a shooting at Charles University in central Prague on Thursday afternoon
A police officer secures the area following the shooting at one of the buildings of Charles University in Prague on Thursday
Mr Leese said: ‘A policeman came in and started shouting loudly in what I assume was Czech.
‘I asked for it in English and he said there was an active shooter and to stay inside and stay down.
‘The staff were very calm, turned all the lights off very quickly and urged us to stay calm, the restaurant was relatively quiet. The policeman left urgently and we stood in the corner of the restaurant.’
The couple, from Merstham in Surrey, were kept in the the museum for over an hour, hearing sirens outside.
Mr Leese added: ‘Rachael is still in shock. We were meant to be having dinner at the restaurant right by the building tonight and were going to pop in for a drink earlier on, but we crossed the bridge instead.
‘With everyone else being so calm it didn’t seem real to me. We’ve been in touch with all of our families to let them know that we’re safe.
‘We obviously can’t wait to get home now.’
Prague’s rescue service confirmed that 11 people had died, including the killer. It said about 30 others suffered various injuries, including nine with serious ones.
Pavel Nedoma, the director of Rudolfinum Gallery, which also is located in the square, told Czech public television he saw from a window a person who was shooting toward the nearby Manes bridge across the Vltava River.
Prime Minister Petr Fiala cancelled his scheduled events and was heading for Prague.
Czech President Petr Pavel said he was ‘shocked’ by the shooting, adding: ‘I would like to express my deep regret and sincere condolences to the families and relatives of the victims claimed by the shooting.’