Gunshot, screams, panic: Parents shield kids, students scatter — Video shows chaos as Charlie Kirk shot on stage

It was not a usual afternoon as hundreds of people gathered at Utah Univeristy for Charlie Kirk's signature "Prove Me Wrong" debates. Everyone was paying attention to Kirk's speech, who, during his last moment, was responding to a question about transgender mass shooting suspects.

It began as a heated campus debate but turned into a scene of terror on Wednesday when US President Donald Trump's ally and right-wing activist Charlie Kirk was shot during the event at Utah University. Witnesses recalled that the single gunshot that hit Kirk's neck set off a chain reaction of fear, confusion and chaos. According to The New York Times, 28-year-old Andrew Piskadlo was eagerly waiting for his turn to challenge Kirk on the Eight Amendment when the shot rang.

"It was surprising, and no one really got down until the people in front of the stage did," he said, who was about 80 feet away from Kirk. "People got down in waves." Brandon Russon, 24, a student at Ensign College, described a split second of disbelief. "I just saw Charlie kind of slump backwards, and I saw — it was very graphic — a lot of blood," he recalled. "At first I wondered if it was some kind of act, because he was literally being asked about mass shootings.

But within a second, I knew it was real," he told New York Times.

Russon, who was 20 feet away from Kirk, said that he stayed crouched on the ground for about a minute, fearing more bullets were coming. "I texted my wife to tell her I loved her," he said. "Then I grabbed my friend and ran."For Zachary Morris, a registered nurse from Lehi, the first instinct was to protect his 3-year-old daughter."I reached down, grabbed my daughter and my phone, and began to run," he told New York Times.

"All I could think was that I gotta get her out of there," he added.

Others described the confusion spreading as quickly as the fear. Isaac Davis, a junior at UVU, said the gunfire didn't sound like what he expected."It wasn't that loud — almost like a firecracker," he said. "But once people started screaming, it turned into hysteria. We got pushed into a classroom to hide. I just didn't want to be in the building while everything was going on, so I ran out."

Witnesses recalled that waves of fear rippled across as hundreds scrambled for cover. Some ducked under seats. Others sprinted for nearby buildings. Parents clutching children, strangers pulling each other toward safety — the amphitheatre was suddenly a place of survival, not debate.What lingered afterwards for many wasn't just the shock, but the sense that the danger could have been avoided. "Despite all the security," Piskadlo said, "there were too many spots where something like this could happen."