Parents who witnessed "true horror" when collecting their children gave devastating testimony at the public inquiry into the Southport attack on Monday. The families of surviving children spoke at Liverpool Town Hall alongside a businessman who confronted the attacker during the knife assault.
The inquiry is examining Axel Rudakubana's interactions with relevant agencies before he killed Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and attempted to murder 10 others. The attack occurred during a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on July 29 last year.
Parents describe immediate horror
One mother described receiving a life-changing phone call from her husband when he arrived to collect their two daughters. She told the inquiry: "The words he spoke will never leave me: 'You need to get here now. The kids have been stabbed.'"
She said shock took over instantly and she couldn't make sense of the words. Her husband had entered the building and witnessed "true horror that will stay with him forever" while searching for their daughters, who were later found safe at a neighbour's house.
The woman described arriving "to a scene reserved for nightmares" with emergency services everywhere and injured children around her. Their eldest daughter suffered a chest wound requiring blood transfusions after being stabbed.
Businessman confronted attacker
Jonathan Hayes, whose office was in the same building as the dance class, told how he thought he was going to die after being stabbed by Rudakubana. He said: "My initial feeling was one of terror, seeing a man wielding a bloody knife."
Hayes described grappling with the attacker and falling to the floor before realising he had been stabbed when blood poured from his leg. He said his scar serves as a "physical reminder" of the attack and he suffered constant flashbacks for six months.
Another mother described reaching Hart Street to find "a scene that looked like something from a film set" with children lying on the floor and blood along the walls. She ran into the building and saw "the coward lying face down on the floor being arrested" - a scene that "haunts me, appearing both in my nightmares and during the frequent flashbacks I continue to experience daily."
Families demand accountability
Parents spoke of children "changed forever" and living in "constant vigilance" following the attack. One mother said her daughter "carries the pain of survival" with guilt, sadness and "deep heavy grief that she cannot name but clearly feels."
The families called for answers about why the attack was allowed to happen. One mother demanded: "Why was no action taken? What change is coming, not in theory but in practice? How many more lives will be destroyed before the system takes responsibility?"
The inquiry continues on Tuesday when more impact statements from parents of survivors are expected to be heard.
Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
