It was 24 minutes until William Bouyea knew his daughter, a freshman at Florida State University, was safe.
For Charlotte Bouyea, 19, a Westfield native, it took a few minutes longer to know if she would live or die on the campus she quickly came to love.
“I can’t make noise right now,” Charlotte texted at 12:09 p.m., on Thursday, shortly after an active shooter alert rang out.
“Are you hiding?” her father pressed.
“Yes,” she responded.
“Ok. Lock everything ... I wish I was there. U ok? Ur phone’s on silent?” William Bouyea asked, according to texts obtained by The Republican.
“Yeah. He’s right outside,” she answered, regarding the student shooter who ambushed the campus.
“Your building?” her dad asked.
“My classroom,” Charlotte, his eldest daughter, answered. She and a teacher and another student barricaded themselves inside a small room where they were taking an elective English class, and tucked themselves into a corner.
“We just grabbed anything we could and shoved it against the door; then we hid,” Charlotte Bouyea said during an interview Friday. “I was scared. Initially, I thought it was just a fight between two people and someone pulled a gun.”
A former student and stepson of a Florida deputy has been identified as the suspect. He allegedly killed two and injured six, using his stepmother’s weapon.
Phoenix Ikner, 20, was ultimately wounded by police and taken into custody. Authorities have not disclosed a potential motive. Ikner arrived on the campus an hour before the shooting when he wandered through the campus green and buildings, firing a handgun shortly before lunchtime, authorities said.
He was shot at noon, according to accounts.
The shootings took place before a “United Against Hate” march to honor a Florida State student, Maura Binkley, killed in a mass shooting at a nearby studio in 2018.
Family members have identified two food service workers, Robert Morales, and Tiru Chabba, as the dead. Six others were shot and wounded, but are expected to survive.
Charlotte Bouyea, among a student body of tens of thousands, said she did not know Ikner nor any of the dead or injured.
However, she said the campus community is understandably rocked. As students approach their last week of classes and finals, academics were briefly paused and the university community has gathered for vigils.
Among them: A statue in the campus that signals “unconquerable.”
She also believes attending colleges, unfortunately, may lead to peril.
“It’s hard to feel truly safe, going back,” she said. “I cried. But we lean on each other.”
At 12:33 p.m., William, and his wife Gabby who had been praying, got the assurance they needed.
“We just got evacuated by police. Lots of people are crying. I think I’m safe now.”
Wire service reports were included.
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