People from Florida State University will revisit the places near the student union building on Friday after a shooting incident occurred on Thursday.
They have been given permission to go back and pick up their personal items that they had to leave in haste when the shooting started, causing chaos and panic among the students.
McKenzie Heeter, a 20-year-old junior, was just feet away from the gunman when the shooting began.
“As I was leaving the union carrying food,” McKenzie remembered, “I saw a vehicle painted orange resembling a Hummer. I then noticed a person wearing a similar orange shirt, holding a large rifle, then switching to a handgun and shooting a woman. That’s when I ran away in fear.”
MORE | Alleged Florida State University gunman is son of local sheriff’s deputy, police say
McKenzie describes sprinting across campus in sheer panic.
“I did a four-minute mile in sandals. Ive never run that fast in my life,” she said. “I felt like I have got to leave or else it could be me next.”
While she says the entire afternoon feels surreal, one moment replays vividly in her mind — the horrific moment she saw the suspect shoot a woman in purple scrubs from behind.
“Her back was to him. She was just walking. I dont even think she registered what happened. Thats what I just keep thinking about.”
In the chaos, McKenzies first call was to her mom.
“Shes my best friend. I just wanted her to know I was okay,” she said.
Investigators say the gunman killed two people, neither of them students, and injured six others who have yet to be identified.
One suffered critical injuries but, on Thursday evening, was upgraded with the rest of the injured survivors to fair condition.
The accused gunman, a stepson of a local sheriffs deputy, was also taken to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries after law enforcement agents shot him.
Investigators say the suspect used a handgun that was once his stepmothers service weapon. He was also carrying a shotgun, investigators say.
As the entire campus continues to process the trauma, McKenzie tells ABC News that her sense of safety has been shattered.
“The most heartbreaking part is that everybody feels unsafe now. Someone just came and took that from us,” she said.
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