LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Dec. 6, 2023, was a day that shook our entire community when a gunman opened fire inside Beam Hall at UNLV— killing three faculty members and leaving another seriously hurt.
Students and staff were locked down for hours, fearing the worst.
I spoke with a survivor who was on campus that day. Carolyn Salvador Avila shared what it was like to live through the chaos and how she's moving forward one year later.
“I was actually in the Student Union when it started. Somebody ran towards us and said get inside right now, school shooting, this is not a drill, shooter on campus,” Salvador Avila said.
Salvador Avila was one of many students who hid, fearing for her life. She told me she didn't know if she would make it home that day.
We got that first text that said, active shooter on campus in Beam Hall. This is not a drill. Run, hide, fight. And the lights turned off.
The gunman killed three professors and seriously hurt a fourth before being stopped by campus police.
Salvador Avila said the lockdown lasted for hours as students and staff struggled to grasp what was happening.
“It was really terrifying to come back the next day to pick up our bags and see all the notebooks open. Some had little notes to parents or friends, saying, ‘I love you guys,’ because you didn’t know what was going to happen.”
What has changed in the last year?
Since the shooting, UNLV has implemented a number of new security measures and safety protocols.
Local News
Beam Hall to reopen with new security measures after deadly UNLV shooting
But for Salvador Avila, the scars remain— a constant reminder of the day that changed her life and the lives of many other locals forever.
“There’s a little metal plate by the Student Union that cars drive over. Every time I hear it, I immediately think something is happening again.”
Abel: How does it feel to have survived a school shooting?
Salvador Avila: To be completely honest, it feels like people only pay attention when it’s first on the news, and then they forget. But it’s not okay for so many students to know what it feels like to call your parents and possibly say goodbye.
As the community gathers to honor the lives lost, survivors like Salvador Avila show the strength it takes to move forward.
It’s the kind of thing that never really goes away. But people heal. The community heals.
