- Title: CZECH-SHOOTING/MORNING Czech town mourns victims of restaurant shooting
- Date: 25th February 2015
- Summary: UHERSKY BROD, CZECH REPUBLIC (FEBRUARY 25, 2015) (REUTERS) ****WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** UHERSKY BROD MAIN SQUARE WITH TOWN HALL WOMEN TALKING VARIOUS OF STREET IN FRONT OF SITE OF SHOOTING WOMAN SPEAKING TO POLICEMEN IN THE FRONT OF SITE DRUZBA RESTAURANT - SITE OF SHOOTING UHERSKY BROD RESIDENTS APPROACHING SITE/CANDLES PEOPLE LAYING CANDLES (SOUNDBITE) (Czech) UHERSKY BROD RESIDENT, ALENA KUBANOVA, SAYING: "He (one of the victims) was a really nice guy, my colleague used to work with him. He had been retired since last spring, he had been on a pension for not even a year. Last Thursday we were sitting with him here in the restaurant at the (same) table where he was killed. We agreed with him that we would meet there again this Thursday. We used to come here every Thursday. I know exactly the table, I don't even have to go there again. If it would have happened tomorrow, we would not be alive." MOTHER WITH CHILD BURNING CANDLE (SOUNDBITE) (Czech) UHERSKY BROD RESIDENT, PETR PILAVCIK, SAYING: "This is a very tragic event. When you follow it on TV from somewhere abroad, you think it doesn't concern you. But such a tragedy can happen in any place around the world." PEOPLE AT MEMORIAL CEREMONY UHERSKY BROD MAYOR, PATRIK KUNCAR, LAYING FLOWERS TOWN RESIDENTS PEOPLE BURNING CANDLES PHOTOGRAPHERS PEOPLE MOURNING PEOPLE LAYING FLOWERS (SOUNDBITE) (Czech) UHERSKY BROD MAYOR, PATRIK KUNCAR, SAYING: "This is the darkest day in the history of our town, which should never be repeated. Thank you." KUNCAR SPEAKING TO JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (Czech) UHERSKY BROD MAYOR, PATRIK KUNCAR, SAYING: "The town council just had an extraordinary session and approved setting aside financial aid for the families of the victims." PEOPLE AT SITE
- Embargoed: 12th March 2015 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Czech Republic
- Country: Czech Republic
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA5WHH9T7CRFLDYUBOM02X26SVS
- Story Text: Residents of Uhersky Brod mourned on Wednesday (February 25) victims of a shooting that left eight people dead on Tuesday (February 24).
Eight people were killed when a man entered a local restaurant and opened fire in the quiet eastern Czech town of 17,000, around 300 km. (180 miles) southeast of Prague. The man reportedly shot himself and was found dead at the scene.
Hundreds attended a memorial service held on Wednesday in front of the restaurant, with residents lighting candles for fellow members of their community killed in the shooting.
"He (one of the victims) was a really nice guy, my colleague used to work with him. He had been retired since last spring, he had been on a pension for not even a year," local resident Alena Kubanova said.
"We used to come here every Thursday. I know exactly the table, I don't even have to go there again. If it would have happened tomorrow, we would not be alive," she added.
Authorities said that the man who committed the shooting was aged 60 and believed to have been mentally unstable.
"This is a very tragic event. When you follow it on TV from somewhere abroad, you think it doesn't concern you. But such a tragedy can happen in any place around the world," another resident, Petr Pilavcik, said.
The town's mayor Patrik Kuncar laid flowers at the site and called the event "the darkest day in the history of our town."
Mass shootings are very rare in the Czech Republic, a country of 10.5 million. National police chief Tomas Tuhy said the incident was the worst on record. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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