Hero bystanders rushed Christchurch victims to hospital while shots rang out

While the terrifying carnage in Christchurch was unfolding before their eyes, heroic bystanders sprang into action to rush victims to hospital while shots were still being fired.

While the horrific carnage was still taking place, heroic onlookers sprang into action as the terrifying slaughter at Masjid Al Noor mosque unfolded before their eyes.

Bystander Carl Pomare saw “people running for their lives” after hearing “rapid fire” from a semi-automatic weapon that sounded just like fireworks going off.

An image from the footage that one of the shooters streamed on Facebook Live. Picture: AFP

A police officer patrols the area where the shooting took place. Picture: AP

“We saw these people hit the ground, they were being shot in front of us,” he told journalists.

Carl and his pals, from Naki Labour Hire, quickly formed a cordon across a road near the murder scene in Christchurch to keep people away from the danger, The Sun reported.

Carl Pomare and his friends formed a cordon to keep people away from danger. Picture: Facebook

They then dashed to cradle the blood-covered victims — before the emergency services arrived on the scene.

“We saw them being shot. Being mowed down as they were running away,” he told Newstalk ZB.

“I said to my mate, ‘We need to do something’.”

Carl said they were nursing victims on the footpath amid what he described as “absolute carnage”.

“There was one little girl, probably about five, she’d been shot, and her father,” he said.

“We managed to get the five-year-old on the back of one of the vehicles before the ambulance came, she was critical.

“We looked at it thinking we’ve got to get this little girl to the hospital now otherwise she’s going to die.

“My worker was nursing a guy who had been shot in the back three times for about half an hour, saying, ‘Hang in there buddy’. He passed away in my his arms.”

The contractors stayed for more than an hour, even when the shooter was still at large.

“The shooter came out chasing people running away,” he said.

“While my worker was nursing one of the victims there was more shots inside the mosque.

Flowers and tributes placed at a mosque for the victims of the attack. Picture: AFP

"It was a pretty scary situation because there were still other shots being fired at the time inside the mosque.

“We were very vulnerable but in a situation like that you don’t think about yourself.”

People who heard his interviews on social media described the men’s efforts as “incredible” and "heroic."

Other eyewitnesses have been praised of helping ferry the injured to hospital after the massacre.

A police officer cordons off the area close to the Masjid al Noor mosque. Picture: AFP

A police officer has been lauded a hero after pulling a suspected shooter from a car during an arrest.

Footage captured by a motorist reveals the gunman’s car blocked between the footpath and a police car.

Two officers are seen approaching the car with their weapons drawn before dragging the driver out.

The arrest came after a police car collided with the killer’s station wagon and into the gutter.

Brave police officers dragged the shooter from his station wagon. Picture: Supplied

The arrest came after a police car collided with the killer’s station wagon and into the gutter. Picture: Supplied

DOZENS DEAD

At least 49 people are dead and 48 people injured after a man, believed to be Australian, opened fire at two New Zealand mosques yesterday during Friday prayers.

The man, in his late 20s, will face court in Christchurch this morning charged with murder. Two other men and a woman are in custody.

Shooters executed Muslim worshippers in Christchurch during prayers — with one live-streaming the slaughter on Facebook in a 17-minute video.

Those who survived the slaughter told how they prayed the attackers would run out of bullets during the murderous rampage which left survivors covered in blood.

"At first I thought it was just like construction work or something, then people were all running and screaming," said 14-year-old Idris Khairuddin.

"My uncle got shot in his backside, I am just praying it is not too serious."

"This week is the first time I went to the mosque … I am still shaking, and I am traumatised," Mr Khairuddin said.

This article originally appeared in The Sun and has been reproduced here with permission.

Originally published as Hero bystanders rushed Christchurch victims to hospital while shots rang out