A Russian musician remembers how the concert bombing in Moscow made her say “goodbye” to the world

NEW DELHI: Russian artist Alyona Kazinskaya remembers the tragic Crocus Mall assault, which filled the building with smoke and made it impossible for the survivors to sneak out of the building safely. She had a last-minute escape with burning lungs and squinting eyes.
The rock band “Picnic” from the Soviet period was going to play in the mall close to Moscow, and Kazinskaya and his pals had bought tickets at the last minute.

At about 8:01 p.m., with bullets ringing loudly throughout the hallway, breathless Kazinskaya recorded her first audio message on her Telegram account, turning the fleeting exhilaration into a lifelong dread.
“I cherish each and every one of you. I’m in the picnic area of Crocus City Hall. This is the concert where they are filming. I’m in the hallway. Dial the cops,” a terrified Kazinskya murmured.
Kazinskaya said in a Reuters interview that she “quickly realised the noises she was hearing were gunshots, not special effects.” She attempted to get everyone in their immediate vicinity to get up and flee with her buddy.
“We attempted to raise people, and although we succeeded in doing so, we were unable to pass since everyone had fled to the outside. The shooters entered the hall at that same time. “After that, I tossed my companion to the ground and shouted, ‘Let’s crawl,” she said.”
“And finally, the third thought was, I’m going to write something now—yes, I’m frightened, but I’m going to put these messages in my (Telegram) channel because that way someone, somewhere, will definitely hear them, find them and call someone,” she added as she recounted the tragic evening.
With quivering fingers, Kazinskaya composed three messages in a flash on her phone at 8:08 p.m.
“Please ring the police!!!!!”
“Crocus City Hall” “Shooting”
At 8:17 p.m., an audio message with the phrase “Fire!”
The massive music venue had been set on fire by the gunmen using gasoline. The two pals sought safety in a lavatory. Everywhere you looked, smoke was there. They made six attempts to escape but were unable to see anything and forced to keep backing away.
She assumed this would be her last audio message, so at 8:23 p.m., she recorded a four-second message.
“You have my affection. Farewell.”
The music venue was set on fire by gunmen using gasoline during the raid. Two pals sought safety in a heavily smoked loo.
The thick smoke pushed them back, despite their repeated efforts to flee. As four assailants with Kalashnikov rifles burst into the auditorium, shooting at concertgoers, Kazinskaya was caught up in the bloodiest incident to strike Russia in the last 20 years.