'It was like total chaos': Metro Atlantans recount Las Vegas mass shooting

ATLANTA — Metro Atlantans have begun to return home from Las Vegas after Sunday night’s mass shooting that took at least 58 lives and injured more than 500 people.

Channel 2’s Lori Wilson spoke to several travelers Monday who said they were tired and thankful to be home after being so close to the worst mass shooting in U.S. history.

“It was like total chaos. The entire Strip was locked down,” LaWanda Washington told Wilson.

Washington was in Vegas to support her daughter, who is a singer.

She said it was a great trip that ended in chaos.

Channel 2's Justin Wilfon is in Las Vegas gathering information for the latest on this developing story for LIVE REPORTS throughout the day Tuesday on Channel 2 Action News. 

“You never know, anything can happen at any time. Very scary. So sad for the people affected and we were just there the night before,” Washington said.

Tara Williams also returned home from a Vegas trip. She was at a conference and knew people who were staying in the same hotel where the shooter was taking aim at concertgoers down below.

“At first it was just surreal to know that we were that close,” Williams told Wilson.

Video from the scene shows people running frantically for their lives. It was a scene that had police lock down most of the Strip -- even those who weren’t at the Route 91 Harvest Festival feeling the weight of the tragedy.

“I just thought thank God, and life is so short you just have to embrace every day, cherish your family, and you never know, anything can happen at any time,” Washington told Wilson.

“Everybody (was) reaching out to me, making sure I was alright, you know? You really realize how short life is and not to take things for granted,” Williams said.

“It’s a terrible feeling,” Frank Marchese, who was passing through the Atlanta airport, told Channel 2’s Rikki Klaus.

Just 24 hours earlier, he was at dinner near Mandalay Bay when the shooting unfolded.

“People were just running through the restaurant, freaking out, crying and screaming and running,” Marchese said.

He told Klaus he got dragged into a kitchen, then on an elevator and got stuck. Rumors flew that the gunfire was coming from cars and buildings.

“People were yelling out, he’s right behind us, so we didn’t know what was going on,” Marchese said.

Deborah McClanahan was eating dinner nearby when the restaurant evacuated.

“Someone came in screaming for everyone to get out because there were multiple shooters within the area,” McClanahan said.

She told Klaus that she and her husband drew on their Army backgrounds, and left quickly for their hotel.

“We saw the video, and our hearts just immediately started to mourn for the families of those who were injured and killed,” McClanahan said.

Cox Media Group