8-year-old Buffalo mass shooting survivor recalls hiding in supermarket fridge with her father: 'I was just scared for my mom'

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8-year-old Buffalo mass shooting survivor recalls hiding in supermarket fridge with her father: 'I was just scared for my mom'
A crowd gathers as police investigate after a shooting at a supermarket on Saturday, May 14, 2022, in Buffalo, N.Y. Multiple people were shot at the Tops Friendly Market. Police have notified the public that the alleged shooter was in custody.Joshua Bessex/Associated Press
  • An 8-year-old Buffalo mass shooting survivor said she was scared for her mom during the attack.
  • London Thomas and her father were hiding in a cooler while her mother was at a different spot in the grocery store.
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An 8-year-old recalled being scared for her mother while hiding with her father during the Buffalo mass shooting.

According to Yahoo News, during an interview on CNN's "Don Lemon Tonight" earlier this week, Lemon asked the child, identified as London Thomas, what she was thinking while inside the grocery store when the incident occurred last weekend.

The outlets reported that the child was with her father, Lamont Thomas, inside the cooler while her mother was at a different spot in Tops Friendly Market.

"I wasn't scared," London responded. "I was just scared for my mom."

Authorities allege that an 18-year-old white man drove hours to a predominately Black neighborhood in Buffalo, New York, and opened fire at a local supermarket, where he shot multiple people.

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"She was crying because she thought that her mom was out there," Thomas, who was shielding his daughter, told CNN. "Only good thing is that she never got to walk out there and see the carnage. She just was able to hear it."

During the interview with CNN, London's mother, Julie Harwood — who also survived the shooting — said she was "frantic" while separated from her family. Harwood added the suspect was "two feet away from me getting arrested."

Police officials said that out of the 13 victims, 11 were Black during the "racially motivated" incident. The man, who live-streamed the attack, was taken into custody at the scene and charged with first-degree murder, to which he pleaded not guilty.

According to ABC News, funerals for some of the Buffalo shooting victims started this week.

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