Arnulfo Reyes: Injured Uvalde teacher PLAYED DEAD for an hour to survive Salvador Ramos' carnage
UVALDE, TEXAS: Arnulfo Reyes was one of the teachers who was shot by gunman Salvador Ramos at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The teacher said that after he was shot by the gunman who killed 19 students and two teachers, he played dead for over an hour in order to survive the massacre. Reyes spoke about the horrific attack in an interview with ABC News and offered more detailed accounts of the horror inside Robb Elementary School on May 24 that ended with 11 of his students dead.
Reyes told the news network that he was watching a movie with 11 of his students when he heard the deadly shots ringing out. The 17-year veteran teacher described multiple horrific encounters with the gunman and described the horror inside the classroom on May 24, when 18-year-old gunman Salvador Ramos attacked Robb Elementary School.
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Reyes and his students were in Room 111, one of the adjoining classrooms where Ramos allegedly carried out the attack, he said. When the children began asking, "What is going on?" Reyes said he attempted to remain calm and gave instructions to his students to keep them safe.
"I don't know what's going on, but let's go ahead and get under the table," Reyes said he told the students. "Get under the table and act like you're asleep". After Reyes told the children to get under the table, he turned around and saw the gunman standing there. Ramos then almost immediately opened fire on the classroom, Reyes said. Reyes said he was shot twice. One bullet went through an arm and lung, and another bullet hit him in the back.
As Reyes fell unconscious, Ramos turned his AR-15 rifle on to third and fourth graders. Reyes went on to say that he heard police officers outside the classroom as a child in the next room called for help. But, the officers walked away having not heard the pleas. Reyes said he played dead for an hour and 17 minutes but could hear Ramos going from his classroom to the adjoining classroom to continue his rampage.
Law enforcement officers came back a second time telling Ramos to come out and finally breached the door of Ramos’ classroom before fatally shooting the gunman. But, by then 11 students were dead. One student survivor, 10-year-old Samuel Salinas, said that the gunman came into his classroom and said, “You're all gonna die,” and just started shooting. But, Salinas played dead to avoid being shot.
Reyes is currently recovering at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.