‘We broke down the doors’

How people caught in the Moscow terrorist attack saved the lives of those around them

On March 22, terrorists launched a deadly attack at the Crocus City Hall music venue outside Moscow. At least 143 people lost their lives in the mass shooting and fire, and the death toll is only expected to rise. Amidst the panic as the crowd attempted to escape, there were those who led others to safety, stayed behind to help, or even ran in the opposite direction. Meduza is sharing some of their stories.

Islam Khalilov

Fifteen-year-old Islam Khalilov worked as a coat check attendant at the Crocus City Hall music venue. He told the local news site msk1.ru that when the terrorist attack first began, he and his colleagues heard “some strange sounds” coming from the ground floor. Moments later, he saw people starting to run from the direction of the stairs and escalator.

“I knew that if I didn’t react, I’d lose my own life and the lives of many others. Honestly, it was very scary. When I was in the crowd and I was heading toward the door to open it, I thought someone might come from the stairs or escalator and throw a grenade or start shooting. That didn’t happen, thank God, and I managed to open the door in time and let everyone out,” Islam said.

Islam estimates he saved around 100 people that evening. He left the hall last, after making sure everyone around him got out. Islam mentioned that he’d received training on what to do in an emergency. “I knew where to lead people to keep them safe,” he said.

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Islam has received praise and recognition for his heroism during the attack. Upon learning he was a fan, Moscow’s Spartak soccer team invited the teenager to meet the players and presented him with a personalized jersey and season tickets. Russian rapper Morgenshtern gifted Islam one million rubles ($10,785), which the teenager said he would use to help his family. Moreover, Grand Mufti of Russia Ravil Gaynutdin announced that the young man would be awarded the Russian Islamic community’s Medal for Merit.

Artyom Donskov

Fourteen-year-old Artyom Donskov began working as a coat check attendant at the concert hall just a few months ago. On the night of the attack, he was stationed one floor below ground level. “There were only a few minutes left before the final bell, before the concert started, and suddenly a huge crowd started descending from the first floor,” Artyom told msk1.ru. “They were running, screaming, everyone was in a panic. We didn’t understand what was happening. A staff member came down and said there were people shooting.”

The concert attendees rushed to the staff room, but there was no way out to the street from there:

Hundreds of people found themselves at a dead end. The other guys and I decided to take matters into our own hands and help people get to the exit. We went last to make sure everyone got out and everyone was safe. We led people to [the Vegas shopping center]. We stood there, waited, and reassured people. I helped people get to the subway or call a taxi.

Artyom Filimonov

Artyom Filimonov, another coat check attendant, is also 14 years old. He told journalists that at first, he heard what sounded like a heavy object falling. Soon after, there were sounds of breaking glass and automatic gunfire. The teenager, who found himself in a flood of people trying to flee the building, gave the crowd directions on how to reach the exit. Artyom said that two or three weeks before the attack, Crocus management conducted training on what to do in emergency situations.

"There was a crush of people. Everyone from the cloakroom was slowly pushing into the hallways; they’re pretty narrow for so many people. But everyone tried to help each other. At that moment, it was actually like everyone became family. It was terrifying to realize what was going on,” Artem said.

Nikita Ivanov

Nikita Ivanov, another coat check attendant who helped evacuate people, is a high school student. He said he was taking a coat from someone when he heard the gunshots and ran to the staff room, where he saw Islam and Artyom. Artyom used a walkie-talkie to communicate with managers, who then helped coordinate the evacuation. The attendants began opening service exit doors and guiding people out onto the street.

Ilya Krasnikov

Ilya Krasnikov, a 41-year-old father of three, told journalists that he was invited to the concert by friends. After dinner, the group took the elevator to the first floor, where the entrance to the hall was located.

As soon as the doors opened, they heard gunfire. Ilya tried to go out, but someone pulled him back by his clothes. The elevator then descended to the basement floor, where there was an emergency exit. Ilya left the building, but upon realizing his friends were missing, he went back in.

“I started going back against the flow of people. I saw a wounded girl, and I helped her to the paramedics,” Ilya said. When he got back to the hall, he began helping rescue workers evacuate the wounded.

“The doors were blocked on the lower floor. Smoke started filling the area, and people couldn’t get out of the building. So, we broke down the doors and charged through. I suffered slight carbon monoxide poisoning and injured my hands, and in the hospital, they also diagnosed me with a chest contusion.”

Sofia Meyer

Sports commentator Viktor Gusev and TV presenter Sergey Svetlakov credited a concert hall staff member named Sofia Meyer with saving their lives. Gusev recounted how Sofia helped barricade doors to keep the terrorists out and then led a group of people to safety through the smoke and sounds of gunfire.

Unknown concert goers

Concert attendee Anna told RBC that during the evacuation, people helped her carry her child, who uses a wheelchair, down the stairs.

Just minutes before the concert, there was gunfire and screaming, and people started running. We were on the second floor; we didn’t see the shooters, but we immediately realized it was a terrorist attack. I hid behind a column with my child, called my husband, told him what was happening, and asked him to call the police. At first, we looked for a place to hide, but we couldn’t find one. Then people started running toward the stairs, and we followed them. Over the loudspeaker, they said the concert was canceled due to technical reasons and asked people to leave the building and to not use the elevator.

My child is in a wheelchair. At first, I wanted to run down an empty set of stairs, but then I saw a girl’s body lying at the bottom. So we went to the other stairs, and people helped us down [...] They helped lower my child in the wheelchair. Without the wheelchair, we wouldn’t have been able to escape.

Yevgeny

On the day of the attack, Yevgeny took his son to gymnastics training at the Crocus center. The shooting started just as they were driving away. According to Yevgeny, he saw people trying to carry a woman out.

She was being carried by strangers; [I could tell because] they didn’t have coats on, and she was wearing a coat. One of the men said, “Stop, set the woman down.” Her husband was still inside the building; he was probably unconscious. The couple, as I understood, were running late for the concert and were among the last ones in. The woman was wearing a coat because she hadn’t even had time to take it off when she was shot. [...] She had four gunshot wounds: in her legs and groin. There was a lot of blood.

I had a first aid kit in my car, and a year ago, I completed a first aid course for bullet and shrapnel wounds, so we stopped almost immediately, not far from the former traffic police post near Crocus, and I applied a tourniquet and gave her painkillers. Then we went to the ambulance station in [Moscow’s Strogino district].

We were driving against traffic, running all the red lights. The whole trip took about four minutes. Ambulances hadn't even gotten to Crocus by then, but people were already bringing the injured to the station. Medics inserted an IV while she was still in my car.

Alexey Osanushkov

One of the victims of the attack told Izvestia that Alexey Osanushkov, a security guard at the Crocus City Hall music venue, helped her and others evacuate. According to her, she and 20 other people ended up in the basement where there was heavy smoke. Alexey came for them and led them out.

“The terrorists] shot through the glass and then came in through the glass and immediately started shooting [...] People had to be saved without a second’s hesitation. We evacuated as many as possible; everyone did what they could. People were working [to evacuate concertgoers] in the hall, and I evacuated everyone through all the doors in the foyer that could be opened,” Alexey told RBC.

“I didn’t have any fear, just a cold sense of reason. Only afterward, after saving everyone, when they’d already revived me, did I start to feel the fear creeping in. At this point, well, I haven't slept for two nights, let's put it that way,” he said.