An Enniskillen woman who works 1.3km from the Al Noor Mosque in Christchurch, one of the sites of the mass shootings last Friday, has spoken of her shock.

Aoife Lee (33) is originally from Enniskillen but currently lives with her partner and young daughter in Rolleston, a town 30 minutes from Christchurch where the mass shootings took place in two mosques.

She says her feelings and emotions are similar to those she felt following the Omagh bombing in 1998.

Commenting on how she felt when she heard the news of the shootings, Aoife told this newspaper: “The feelings and emotions are sadly quite familiar as they are those we felt during the Omagh tragedy.”

“I am heartbroken for the people whose lives have been cut short and for the family and friends left to grieve, disappointed that it’s happened in a place you call home, angry that it was allowed to happen.”

Aoife explained that although she works as a registered midwife at a hospital close to the Al Noor Mosque, she wasn’t at work on the day of the shooting. She first heard the news as she was on her way to a supermarket. She said: “We heard on the radio that there had been a shooting at a Mosque and that there had been fatalities but we didn’t know how many by that stage.”

She continued: “By the time we got to the supermarket I had received an email from my daughter’s day care centre to say that they, along with every other day care, school, college and university had gone into lockdown. No one allowed in and no one allowed out.”

“The shootings had taken place in two locations and it wasn’t known how many offenders there were or if other locations were planned so until more was known all public buildings went into lockdown. By the time we got home from the supermarket the updated number of fatalities was unconfirmed but at least 27 and that’s when we realised just how serious it was,” Aoife added.

Aoife noted that a number of her colleagues were working when the attack took place.

“I have heard their stories of hearing the gunfire and having to deal with the aftermath including the hospital being on lockdown, armed police men at each entrance which intimidated a lot of the staff members as the police force are not usually armed,” she said.

She continued: “There were 20 ambulances bringing in all the injured. There were 49 people being treated for gunshot wounds, 12 theatres were open all at the same time, around the clock to treat the wounded, some needing multiple surgeries because of their injuries. At the moment there are still 29 people being cared for at Christchurch hospital and eight of those remain critical so sadly they expect the death toll, currently at 50, to rise. The victims ages range from two years old to 71 years old. Hearing that children as young as two had died really got to me,” she added.

Working at the hospital on the Sunday following the incident, Aoife described the atmosphere as “still very raw.”

She said: “The armed guard greeted me on my way in to work and I personally felt a bit safer knowing they were there but I can understand how scary it can be for people who aren’t used to seeing armed police.”

Noting that there is a “sense of fear” in the city following the attack, Aoife added: “The Prime Minister herself said ‘this is not us.’ But the overwhelming response of love and support from the people of Christchurch to the Muslim community has been humbling.”

Aoife said: “My message to the Muslim people of New Zealand is the same that is being shared on Facebook, this is not us. This is not how we want you to be treated.

“We want you to feel safe. New Zealand isn’t perfect and you are going to find horrible people no matter where you go but the beautiful outpouring of support that the New Zealander’s have shown since this terrible incident have proven that there are far more good people than bad in this wonderful country,” she said, speaking to The Impartial Reporter yesterday (Wednesday).