Survivor of the Birmingham mass shooting describes how he saw people “lying all over the sidewalk and gun smoke in the air”

PINSON, Ala. (WBRC) – Gabriel Eslami, 24, says he is blessed after being shot in Saturday's mass shooting in Birmingham's popular Five Points South neighborhood. He is currently recovering at home in the Pinson area.

“You stand there and suddenly you hear rapid fire, automatic shots,” said Eslami.

Eslami was standing in line with friends for a high school reunion at Hush when he heard the gunshots.

“As I was running, I suddenly lost feeling in my leg. I just fell over and didn't even realize I had been shot. I turned around and just saw people lying all over the sidewalk and gun smoke in the air. It was almost like a horror movie,” Eslami said.

Eslami told WBRC that a bullet went through his butt and exited the inside of his thigh, narrowly missing vital arteries. His friend, who was also grazed by a bullet, came to his aid and rushed him to UAB.

“By the grace of God, it missed everything. No artery, no blood vessel, no bone. I was told it was just millimeters away from hitting my artery,” Eslami said.

His father, Mo, was waiting outside UAB. He says the crowd grew larger and larger, with everyone waiting impatiently to hear about their loved ones.

“It’s the worst feeling in the world not knowing if I’ll ever see my son again,” said Gabriel’s father Mo.

Arriving at the hospital, Eslami described the bloody scene as he made his way to his son. Images that he cannot get out of his head.

“When I walked through the trauma unit, there were beds full of young people's blood everywhere, and the worst part was not knowing who would make it and who wouldn't,” said Mo Eslami.

It was a great relief for him when he saw his son and knew that things could have been much worse for both of them.

“No parent wants to bury their child. This has to stop. When people have problems with each other, there are other options than using violence and ruining one's life and killing another in the process,” Gabriel said.

Gabriel's father agrees and says that given all the violence, something has to happen.

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