The 10-year-old boy who was shot during a Super Bowl rally in Kansas City recounted to NewsNation on Thursday what it was like to survive the tragedy and why he decided to speak out.
Kansas City resident Samuel Arellano and his family appeared on “Cuomo” about his recovery from being nearly shot in the lung while attending a Super Bowl rally on Wednesday. NewsNation host Chris Cuomo began by asking the 10-year-old how he was doing since recovering from the incident, but Arellano seemed shy about speaking. (Related: Up to 15 injured in shooting near Chiefs' Super Bowl parade: Report)
“Good,” Arellano said with a smile.
“That's it? Just okay? You have to give me more than that. You just survived one of the most terrifying situations,” Cuomo teased.
“I've been feeling better ever since I was discharged from the hospital,” Arellano replied.
Cuomo continued to talk about how Arellano reacted quickly to the incident, asking what the 10-year-old boy “decided to do” when he learned what had happened. Arellano said his own reaction to hide rather than run was due to his school training.
“I [decided] “He was trying to hide behind a trash can,” Arellano said, adding that he was trying to “protect himself from gunfire.”
Arellano described her wounds as “like being stabbed 10 times,” but Cuomo directed questions to Arellano's family member, Eunice, who was with her at the time of the incident. (Related: Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas blames guns after reporter reports on heavy police presence at parade)
“And it was hard for Eunice to understand at first, wasn't it? When you guys got home, Sam told you, “I'm telling you, you got hit.'' But you couldn't see anything, right? ” Cuomo asked.
“Well, we were very confused because there was a lot of confusion while everything was going on. We were like undercover agents and we were sitting on the floor and a lot of people were trampling on us. It was just a very tragic moment. So every time he told us that, they thought maybe they were trampling on him. So we didn't expect that,” Eunice said.
“The only reason we didn't think he was shot was because he wasn't bleeding, [anything] so. [It wasn’t] It was under his armpit until he took off his shirt [and] we [saw] Gunshot. ”
Eunice went on to say that doctors were similarly “stunned” but explained to Arellano's family that the bullet had hit Arellano's bones and was just inches from reaching his lungs. Mr. Arellano told Mr. Cuomo that he concluded that the reason he spoke out about his recovery was so that viewers could “warn” others.
“You want to talk about this. Why Sam? What do you want people to know?” Cuomo asked.
“Please be careful,” Arellano said.
“Be careful, why?” Cuomo asked.
“People can put guns in their pockets and fire them at any time,” Arellano said.
Since the shooting incident, one person has been confirmed dead and more than a dozen people, ranging in age from 8 to 47, have been injured. Authorities announced Thursday that three suspects, including two juveniles, were taken into custody. Authorities also noted that several firearms were recovered from the scene, but the motive of the three suspects has not been determined.
