SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- A survivor of the Columbine High School shooting is reflecting on his own past tragedy in the wake of the school shooting in Florida.
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Sean Hooker was 14-years-old and attended Columbine High School when two gunmen started shooting. He now lives in San Diego.
“When I was there and finally realized exactly what was happening, it was complete shock," Hooker said. "You know, I couldn’t think. I remember all I could say was 'Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god.’ And then the next step is ‘I gotta get out.’"
Thirteen people died in the Columbine shooting; as he watched the news coverage of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, it brought those memories back.
“Especially this one, it looks a lot like Columbine. I mean, just seeing the single file going out of the school, hearing about the school, I mean, I see a lot of similarities there,” Hooker said. "It's kind of like it opens it up again. It's this scar that you will have, that you will carry."
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Now, he wants survivors of school shootings to know there is hope. “Yeah, I mean it is hard. It’s never easier. I think what I’ve learned is it’s better to talk about it,” Hooker said. “Rely on your fellow students, rely on your teachers. Even people that I really didn’t get along with at the time, we became great friends. You know, I learned a lot from people that were around me.”
