The inquest into 51 people murdered during the March 2019 shootings on Monday morning heard from two police officers who travelled to the mosque with specialist Hato Hone St John staff on March 15.
The two police officers - one from Auckland and the other from Australia - were in Christchurch at the time of the attack for a sniper training course.
Seven people were killed at Linwood Islamic Centre, the terrorist’s second target after he massacred worshippers at Al Noor Mosque, seven kilometres away.
The Australian officer told the Coroners Court he recalled much of the six minutes the paramedics spent on the side of the road were filled with officers convincing them to continue to the mosque.
“I would say that we were there as protection, and I think people being actively killed outweighed the need to remain out of the scene,” he said.
Deputy Chief Coroner Brigitte Windley. Photo / Pool, Iain McGregor, The Press, RNZ
The officer confirmed to Deputy Chief Coroner Brigitte Windley he believed being in that vehicle held him back from getting to the scene.
The paramedics were waiting to hear if the scene was safe and if they had permission to continue driving there, he officer said.
The Auckland-based officer, a member of the Armed Offenders Squad (AOS), said the pair were sent to Christchurch Central Police Station when they heard news of the attack. There they jumped in a St John Specialised Emergency Response Team (Sert) vehicle alongside the specialist paramedics.
He told the court he did not know exactly where they were going when he got into the vehicle. It became clear while driving that Linwood was the “newest” scene and the most important to get to.
The Sert paramedics then pulled the vehicle over to put on protective equipment and sort out where they were going.
The AOS member also spoke to a member of the public who wanted to go to the mosque. He told them to go inside and stay put.
Counsel assisting the coroner, David Boldt. Photo / Pool, Iain McGregor, The Press, RNZ
David Boldt, a counsel assisting the coroner, told the court the stop lasted about six and a half minutes.
The AOS member said he did not know what made the St John staff decide to continue driving to the mosque, but he believed it might have been because he told them to.
He was focused on getting to the scene to help and wanted to get there as soon as possible.
He told the court the decision for the Sert to pull over and “kit up” was necessary and understandable.
“Him stopping, as far as I’m concerned, is a necessary and sensible course of action. The reason for that is obviously getting some sort of situational awareness over the incident, suiting up and obviously having to talk to the member of the public on the side of the road.
“I wouldn’t say I was unhappy with the stop. What I would say is, I’m eager to get to the scene to do my job.”
He did not believe the mosque was safe when he arrived about 2.21pm, the officer said. He was unaware it had been cleared.
The AOS member and Australian officer left the Sert members in the vehicle further up the road and ran towards the mosque to begin clearing the scene.
He confirmed he had missed a radio transmission at 2.12pm, which said the scene was under control. Had he known it was safe, “we would have brought Sert forward with us” to help the injured victims, the officer said.
The inquest will examine the following 10 issues over six weeks:
The events of March 15, 2019 from the commencement of the attack until the terrorist’s formal interview by police;
Response times and entry processes of police and ambulance officers at each mosque;
Triage and medical response at each mosque;
The steps that were taken to apprehend the offender;
The role of, and processes undertaken by, Christchurch Hospital in responding to the attack;
Co-ordination between emergency services and first responders;
Whether the terrorist had any direct assistance from any other person on March 15, 2019;
If raised by immediate family, and to the extent it can be ascertained, the final movements and time of death for each of the deceased;
The cause of death for each of the victims and whether any deaths could have been avoided;
Whether Al Noor Mosque emergency exit door in the southeast corner of the main prayer room failed to function during the attack and, if so, why?
