A Florida State University graduate student told ABC News about the terrifying moments she was shot on campus and forced to play dead while the gunman reloaded.
Madison Askins, 23, one of seven people shot near FSU’s student union on Thursday, stated that she was walking with a friend when she heard gunshots.
Askins and her friend “took off running,” but “unfortunately, I fell,” she explained.
Her friend attempted to help her up, but Askins claimed she was then shot in the buttocks. Her friend ran to safety, which she deemed “valid.”
As Askins lay wounded, she said she remained calm and remembered what her parents had taught her to do during active shooter drills: play dead.
“I released all the muscles in my body, closed my eyes and held my breath,” she told me. “And I would take short breaths in between when I needed to.”
“At one point I did think [the gunman] had walked away, so I was going to shift over to grab my phone to share my last ‘I love you’s’ with my family,” according to her.
“I wanted to call my father and tell him I loved him,” she said, wiping away tears.
However, she claimed she then heard the gunman approach and reload his weapon. She stated that she heard him calmly say, “Keep running.”
“I know for certain if I was moving he would’ve shot me again,” she told me.
Askins stated that she “didn’t want to entertain” the idea of dying, adding, “I knew I just needed to stay calm.”
The gunman eventually left, and Askins stated that she remained where she was until an officer arrived to rescue her.
“She packed my wound for me and she kept an eye on the surrounding area,” Askins told me. “I knew it was over when multiple officers came over and told me they had him. “I was able to breathe.
Two people were killed, and six others were injured in the shooting. Officials expect all six injured people to survive.
Askins said she’ll probably be in the hospital for a few more days. She still has the bullet lodged in her vertebrae and will have it removed in a future surgery, she stated.
However, Askins stated that this will not interfere with her ability to complete her studies and pursue her dreams.
“I’m happy to be with my family and to keep moving forward. I have an internship lined up. “I’m so ready to go for it,” she stated.
“I am not going to let it bring me down,” she added. “No, he doesn’t get that.”
The suspected shooter, 20-year-old Florida State University student Phoenix Ikner, was shot by officers and is expected to survive, according to authorities. A motive is unknown.