A couple who took their baby and toddler to a Michigan splash pad and protected them when a deranged gunman opened fire were among the nine people killed in a shooting at the summer attraction on Saturday, family members confirmed.
Mikayla and Eric Coughlin were wounded while trying to protect their two-year-old and seven-month-old daughters when gunfire rang out inside the Brooklands Plaza splash pad near their home at about 5 p.m.
The Rochester couple were shot a combined seven times at the horrific scene, a family friend said. he said in a GoFundMe post.
“After grabbing their ice cream, the couple walked to the splash pad, but within a minute of getting there, Mikayla and Eric heard gunshots,” the post read. “In an attempt to save their children, they each grabbed one child at a time.”
The two were rushed to hospital where they are receiving treatment.
“Thanks to their heroic actions, the children were rescued and able to return home that evening,” a family friend said on the GoFundMe page. “Mikayla and Eric will now face a long and unknown recovery from this unimaginable tragedy.”
As of Sunday night, the fundraiser had raised more than $20,000.
The Coghlins and seven other park visitors were wounded in the shooting by 42-year-old Michael William Nash, who later committed suicide during a standoff with police.
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said an 8-year-old boy was shot in the head and critically injured in the horrific shooting, while a relative, a 4-year-old boy, was in stable condition with a gunshot wound to the thigh. According to the Detroit News.
A 39-year-old woman, a relative of the two children, was also shot in the leg and abdomen and remained in critical condition as of Saturday.
All the other victims were over 30 years old, including a 78-year-old man. Reported by WXYZAll are in stable condition.
Rochester Hills Mayor Brian Burnett said one of the victims was the wife of a city employee, who was at the scene with 14 family members and friends, according to The Detroit News.
“[When I talked to her husband,] “He was in shock but grateful his family are safe and focused on supporting them,” Barnett said, according to the media.
