‘Every person started running’

As she waited for services to start, seated inside the main sanctuary of the church, Andreina Rondón heard the pow, pow, pow, pow of gunshots. Then, the monitor broadcasting the service to congregants in the back of the sanctuary shattered as the sound of gunfire echoed through the church

Rondón’s first thought: Get down on the floor. Her second thought: Los niños están separados. The boys are separated.

Rondón’s sons, 11-year-old Tomás and 3-year-old Luca, were in youth programs away from their mother. Yet Rondón and three other parishioners were immediately ushered into a bathroom next to Luca’s classroom. Police had to clear each room before she could leave, a stretch of time that felt like hours of uncertain desperation.

“(The waiting) was traumatizing,” Rondón said.

Nearly an hour later, Rondón reunited with her boys. Sitting at a bus stop in the wake of the shooting, Tomás said he’s used to monthly active shooter and fire drills at schools. Rondón said her son’s youth group teacher recalled Tomás kept his cool under pressure.

“I was in the closet,” Tomás said. “My friend called my mom to let her know I was safe.”

Churchgoer Ana Orellana said she was in the third row in front of the church sanctuary stage when a fellow worshiper told her to hit the ground. Orellana, 38, then heard multiple shots, prompting her and other worshippers to run for the exits. 

“In that moment we heard four gunshots,” Orellana said. “At that point, they didn’t say to get on the ground. They just said to run. Every person started running. There were like 1,000 people total.”

Orellana said she feared her two children, 14 and 16 years old, were still inside the building, but she has since made contact with them.

Claudia Rojas, 51, said churchgoers were filing into the sanctuary and prayers were about to start when she heard people shout “they’re shooting” from afar. Rojas then heard about five shots, at which point worshippers started throwing themselves to the ground, she said. Rojas fled for the exits with crowds of people, even though she feared she might be an easy target. 

Once she escaped the building and saw the sky, she said, “Amen.”

Standing with authorities and city officials at a news conference, Osteen thanked them for their efforts and asked everyone to pray for the shooter and the victims.

“We don’t know why these things happen,” Osteen said. “But we know God’s in control.”

‘Please pray for Lakewood’

News of the chaos broke on social media.

“There is an active situation involving shots fired at Lakewood,” the church wrote in a post on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. “Law enforcement is on the scene. That is all the information we have at this time. Please pray for Lakewood and our community.”

Houston police said the shooting at the church was an “ongoing, active scene” and asked the public to stay away as officers converged on the area. A bomb squad unit arrived at the church, and officers requested a SWAT unit over the radio to examine a backpack.

Minutes after the gun battle, an HPD officer at the church told a dispatcher over her radio: “We got a little boy down” and requested an ambulance. Police set up a perimeter amid reports of a second suspect, according to the department’s radio traffic, but officials later said there was only one shooter. 

Texas Gov. Abbott said he had spoken with Whitmire and pledged the “full support and resources” of state officials.

“Our hearts are with those impacted by today’s tragic shooting and the entire Lakewood Church community in Houston,” Abbott said in a statement. “Places of worship are sacred. I have been in contact with Mayor Whitmire and offered the full support and resources of the state of Texas, including Department of Public Safety officers and Texas Rangers, to help this community and help bring swift justice to the criminal who committed this heinous act.”

This story has been updated with new information from authorities about the correct age of the child who was shot.

Managing editor John Tedesco and staff writers Miranda Dunlap, Angelica Perez and Danya Pérez contributed to this report.

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