Brantford teens witness aftermath of deadly shooting in Australia

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A young Brantford couple backpacking through Australia are still trying to process the trauma after being amid a deadly mass shooting that left 15 people dead. 

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Finn Foster and his girlfriend Hayden Lombardi, both 18, spent the day surfing and suntanning at Bondi Beach in Sydney on Dec. 14.

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They were walking toward a McDonald’s to get an ice cream and planned to watch the sunset on the beach, where thousands of people were still gathered. 

“We heard popping sounds,” said Foster. “We thought at first it was a car backfiring or fireworks. But when the pops started to overlap and people started running, that’s when we knew something was going on.” 

The couple ran back to a nearby hostel where they were staying. 

“I was panicking,” said Foster in a phone interview. “It didn’t feel real at the time. It still doesn’t feel real. I can’t believe we went through a real terrorist attack.” 

Lombardi said thousands of terrified beachgoers were running for shelter. She held open the hostel door so some could come in. She comforted a distraught young woman, bringing her water and tissues.  

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“I assumed she was shaken up like everyone else,” said Lombardi.  

Only later did she learn the woman, named Rosie, had lost her uncle, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, who was among those killed when two gunmen opened fire during a family Hanukkah celebration at the beach. 

“She reached out to me on Instagram,” said Lombardi. “She was thanking me and saying she hopes I’m doing OK. It was so selfless. She wants me to talk about her uncle. His mission on Earth was to help everyone.” 

While Lombardi remained at the hostel with Rosie, Foster went back to the beach. 

“Nothing was taped up yet,” he said. “There were still bodies on the beach covered in tarps and towels. Everyone was still in a panic. (First responders) were asking anyone off the street if they knew CPR.” 

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Foster said a man staying at the hostel spent three hours on the beach helping revive victims, returning with blood-stained hands. 

“It was the most amount of cop cars I’ve ever seen. There were six or seven helicopters, police boats, ambulances everywhere. It was crazy.” 

He said the beach was littered with hundreds of phones, wallets, food and bicycles. 

“People just dropped their stuff and ran. Cars were pulling over on top of other cars and people were grabbing their kids.” 

Back at the hostel, Foster and a group of others unable to sleep that night watched the news as the death count continued to rise. About 1,000 people were at the late afternoon Hanukkah celebration when two gunmen shot at the crowd. Among the 15 people killed was a 10-year-old girl. Dozens of others were injured. 

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Police and Australian intelligence agencies have declared it an Islamic State-linked terrorist incident. Australian authorities and numerous world leaders say the shooting was motivated by antisemitism. One attacker was taken into custody, and the other was fatally shot by police. 

Foster said Bondi Beach, one of the most visited tourist sites in Australia, was a much different place the day after the shooting. 

“It was silent and eerie. There wasn’t even any sun.” 

At the Bondi Pavilion, a large beachside structure, mourners left flowers and “families were hugging and praying,” said Lomardi. 

“It’s hard to imagine how someone could have that much hate,” she said of the gunmen. 

The teens, who have taken a gap year before university – Foster is a Brantford Collegiate Institute graduate and Lombardi graduated from North Park Collegiate – considered cutting short their travels following the tragedy. But with support from their family and friends, they plan to spend a bit more time in Australia and may visit Vietnam. 

“We’re trying not to live in fear going forward.” 

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