Shooting at Boulder, Colorado grocery store brings back familiar feelings for El Paso man
EL PASO, Texas -- The community in Boulder, Colorado is grieving following the mass shooting at the King Soopers grocery store. 10 people were shot and killed including a Boulder police officer. It's an ordeal many El Pasoans can unfortunately relate to.
One El Pasoan, Ruben Escandon Jr., said he feared for his son's safety who lives in Boulder, Colorado. Escandon Jr. said his son had intended to go to the King Soopers store on Monday. He said his son lives just a few blocks away from the King Soopers.
"You get that phone call checking if your son is alright before you even hear what's happened so that's kind of a stressful situation,” Escandon said.
Escandon Jr. said his son heard sirens before he made his way to the store.
"I called him right away and he didn't answer but he texted me back and said that he was good,” Escandon said.
A close call the Escandons said they are all too familiar with. On October 1, 2017 Escandon Jr. claims he and his daughter were waiting to catch their flight to Las Vegas, Nevada. Escandon Jr. said the plane never arrived in El Paso because it had mechanical issues.
"We were actually going to a conference and then we were going to catch the concert that night,” Escandon Jr. said. “Who knows if we had made that flight would we have been there or not."
On that day a man opened fire on a crowd attending a music festival on the Las Vegas strip. 60 people were killed and hundreds more were wounded.
Here in El Paso, it's been more than a year since the city lost 23 people in the Walmart shooting on August 3, 2019.
Ruben told ABC-7 he was looking to go pick up sodas from the Cielo Vista Walmart for an event that night, but before he could his daughter text him that there was an active shooter.
"That particular day it fell into place that we didn't go,” Escandon said. “That was a close call too."
Ruben told ABC-7 his heart goes out to all the families who have been impacted by the shootings and is thankful beyond words that he has stayed okay though it all.
"We've got somebody from above watching over us and protecting us,” Escandon said. “That's all we can hope for.”
