Ms Amy Adams, a member of Parliament from Christchurch, tweeted: 'Horrified to hear of Christchurch mosque shootings. 'Please do not try and come and collect your children until police say it is safe for people to come into the central city,' they had said. The city council offered a helpline for parents looking for children attending the rally. Fifty to 60 children were kept inside the Christchurch City Council building and the building had been placed on lockdown. Police had cleared Cathedral Square, where thousands of children were participating in the rally, according to. Reports of the shooting happened as young protesters gathered in Christchurch and cities around the world to demand action on climate change. 'We can't leave and we've been told to stay in a room and stay away from the windows.' 'They have told us to stay here because it's not safe,' she told.
She said armed offenders squad (AOS) members with dogs came in and searched the clinic, which is about 50m from the mosque, shortly after.
Linwood Dental Centre practice manager Janine Richmond said she heard about 20 gunshots come from Linwood Mosque at about 1.45pm. ' 'he had a lot of magazines strapped to his legs',' Mr Weatherhead said. Oakford Close resident Robert Weatherhead, who took in people who escaped from the mosque, told NZ Herald they described the gunman as a white man in his 30s or 40s and wearing a uniform, but he had not been able to ascertain what the uniform was.
