Andrew McLaren of New Zealand was shot in the back in a terrifying end to an afternoon at Westgate mall in Nairobi, Kenya, Saturday. He survived the ordeal, and was scheduled to have pieces of the bullet removed from his back on Monday, reported the New Zealand Herald.
McLaren was sitting in a cafe with his wife, Kathy, when they heard the gunfire. They got down as bullets whizzed around them. A cafe worker helped the couple get into a cab after a bullet hit McLaren; they could access the road from the cafe. Luckily, McLaren got to the hospital quickly.
Gary Hannam, chief executive at Olivado, McLaren’s employer, told the story to the New Zealand Herald. McLaren was not well enough to speak with reporters yet, the Aga Kahn hospital had said.
McLaren has worked as an operations manager for Olivado, a natural health products company, in Kenya since 2011.
Hannam said: “Nairobi, in spite of its reputation, is a very quiet place. I’ve been coming here for a long time and this is not what usually happens.”
McLaren’s mother, Elaine McLaren, said, according to the Otago Daily Times: “It’s absolutely horrible. All I know is that he is in a stable condition. I haven’t been able to talk to him yet. If the need arises I will have to go over, but hopefully we won’t get to that stage.”
Articles on victims of the Westgate mall attack:
Nairobi Attack Takes Bright Young Couple: Australian Ross Langdon, Pregnant Dutch Wife Elif Yavuz
Naguib Damji Identified as Second Canadian Killed in Nairobi Westgate Mall Attack
Kofi Awoonor Dead: Poet From Ghana Was Killed in Nairobi Mall Attack
James Thomas, South African Consultant, Killed in Nairobi Mall Attack
David Muthumbi Karechu Among Dozens of Kenyans Killed in Westgate Mall Attack
Juan Ortiz-Iruri, Peruvian Health Consultant, Killed in Nairobi Mall Attack
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