‘I know exactly what these kids are going through today:’ Reporter covering Nashville elementary school massacre reveals on-air that she survived school shooting in 2010
- Joylyn Bukovac was reporting at the scene from The Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, as she revealed she was also a victim
- The news reporter was in eighth grade at Discovery Middle School in Madison, Alabama, on February 5, 2010 when shots were fired in the hallway
- WATCH: Bodycam footage shows Nashville cops taking down shooter
A news reporter broadcasting live from the scene of the Nashville elementary school massacre revealed that she is a school shooting survivor.
Joylyn Bukovac was reporting at the scene from The Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, after transgender Audrey Hale, 28, shot and killed three children and three adults on Monday.
While bringing WSMV 4 viewers updates about the school shooting, Bukovac revealed that she was in fact a victim herself – and the traumatic ordeal brought memories ‘flooding back.’
She was in eighth grade at Discovery Middle School in Madison, Alabama, on February 5, 2010 when shots were fired in the hallway of her school – killing one of her classmates.
Bukovac, while on air, said: ‘This is something that hits close to home for me. I’m actually a school shooting survivor. I was in middle school. This is bringing up a lot of tough memories for me that I’m going through.’
Joylyn Bukovac, a reporter for WSMV 4, revealed on air that she was also the victim of a school shooting. She was broadcasting live from the scene of the Nashville elementary massacre on Monday when she told viewers how the ordeal was bringing back her traumatic memories
Transgender shooter Audrey Hale, 28, (pictured inside The Covenant School on Monday) shot and killed three children and three adults at the Tennessee school. Bukovac was at the scene reporting on the massacre
Keeping composure, she continued to give parents of those children advice on what to do next – while admitting that it took her about two years to fully open up about her own school shooting experience.
Bukovac was later heralded, not only by her co-workers, but by swathes of viewers online for her professionalism and composure during what must have been a tough broadcast.
At the Discovery Middle School shooting in 2010, Todd Brown, 14, was shot dead by 15-year-old Hammad Memon.
Bukovac added: ‘The shock that they’re going to be feeling is going to be unfathomable.
‘I was in the hallway when the gunman opened fire in my school shooting, I was in eighth grade at the time. I wasn’t ready to talk about it for two years really.
‘I hid underneath the risers in my choir class and those minutes and hours of waiting to be released by police officers, it just felt like a lifetime. So I know exactly what some of these kids are going through today.
‘I’m a mom now, so I’m trying to put myself in those shoes.’
Writing on Twitter after her broadcast, the reporter said: ‘I appreciate all the support I’ve received after sharing my story.
‘I don’t talk about it much, but I think about what happened on February 5, 2010 often. I just want people to know they aren’t alone. I also want to discuss solutions. As a mom, I am worried for the future.’
Hammad Memon (left) shot Todd Brown (right) at Discovery Middle School in February 2010 – the school shooting that reporter Joylyn Bukovac was referring to
The reporter kept her composure as she recalled her trauma from the February 2010 shooting
https://youtube.com/watch?v=4So52xcHTRQ%3Frel%3D0%26showinfo%3D1%26hl%3Den-US
All six victims of The Covenant School shooting were identified on Monday.
They were nine-year-olds Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, and three members of staff Cynthia Peak and Mike Hill, both 61, and school head Dr. Katherine Koonce, 60.
Hale went into The Covenant School around 10.13am, opened fire and was killed by police less than 15 minutes later.
After the killing, parents rushed to the school to see if their children were safe and tearfully hugged their kids, and a stunned community held vigils for the victims.
It’s unclear what Hale’s motive was, but police believe she attended the school at some point. She had detailed, drawn maps of the school and had been surveilling it, according to police.
Police said Hale left behind a manifesto they believe will give them a motive into the massacre, the 129th in the United States in 2023.
Audrey Hale (pictured) was responsible for the lives of six people at the Tennessee school
Bukovac was heralded, not only by her co-workers, but by swathes of viewers online for her professionalism and composure during what must have been a tough broadcast
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