‘I'm Shaking': Josh Groban Takes to Twitter During NY Terror Attack
"Devastated for the victims and their families tonight & inspired by the spirit of this city," Josh Groban tweeted
By Sarah Glover ••
Singer Josh Groban took to Twitter Tuesday night after a 29-year-old man deliberately drove a truck through a crowded bike path in lower Manhattan, leaving eight people dead and nearly a dozen injured before being taken into custody.
He was among the cyclists, pedestrians, and high school students who witnessed the deadly attack NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio called a "cowardly act of terror."
Groban said that he wasn't far from the path of the attack along the West Side Highway bike path Tuesday afternoon. He'd been even closer to the site but was distracted by his dog, he said, who pulled him to a park half a block away just moments before.
At 3:07 p.m., prior to the attack, Groban tweeted a photo of his dog.
"Two things get me through my week," the "You Raise Me Up" singer tweeted. "My shrink, and meeting friends at the dog park."
At 3:32 p.m., he tweeted again.
AFP/Getty Images
Police officers secure an area following a shooting incident in New York on October 31, 2017. Several people were killed and numerous others injured in New York on Tuesday after a vehicle plowed into a pedestrian and bike path in Lower Manhattan, police said. "The vehicle struck multiple people on the path," police tweeted. "The vehicle continued south striking another vehicle. The suspect exited the vehicle displaying imitation firearms & was shot by NYPD." / AFP PHOTO / Don EMMERT (Photo credit should read DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images)
Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images
Investigators inspect a truck on Oct. 31, 2017. Several people were killed and numerous others injured in New York on Tuesday after a vehicle plowed into a pedestrian and bike path in Lower Manhattan, police said.
Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images
Investigators inspect a truck on Oct. 31, 2017.
Craig Ruttle/AP
Bicycles and debris lay on a bike path near West and Houston Streets in New York Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017.
AFP/Getty Images
Police officers secure an area in New York on Oct. 31, 2017. Several people were killed and numerous others injured in New York on Tuesday after a vehicle plowed into a pedestrian and bike path in Lower Manhattan, police said. "The vehicle struck multiple people on the path," police tweeted. "The vehicle continued south striking another vehicle. The suspect exited the vehicle displaying imitation firearms & was shot by NYPD."
Louis Burgdorf/MSNBC
Firefighters report to the scene where a vehicle crashed into pedestrians on a popular bike path in Lower Manhattan.
NYPD
New York Police Department officers respond in Lower Manhattan on Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017.
Bebeto Matthews/AP
Paramedics lift an individual into an ambulance Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017, in New York. A motorist drove onto a busy bicycle path near the World Trade Center memorial and struck several people Tuesday, police and witnesses said.
Courtesy of Twitter user @UseJeff
Officials blocked West Side Highway on the afternoon of Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017.
Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images
Police officers arrive to the scene in New York on Oct. 31, 2017.
Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images
A young girl reacts as police officers secure an area in New York on Oct. 31, 2017. Several people were killed and numerous others injured in New York on Tuesday after a vehicle plowed into a pedestrian and bike path in Lower Manhattan, police said. "The vehicle struck multiple people on the path," police tweeted. "The vehicle continued south striking another vehicle. The suspect exited the vehicle displaying imitation firearms & was shot by NYPD."
Louis Burgdorf/MSNBC
Firefighters report to the scene where a vehicle crashed into pedestrians on a popular bike path in Lower Manhattan.
Laura Kurinsky
A photo captured near the scene shows a damaged school bus.
Courtesy of Twitter user @john_ryu
Crowds watch emergency vehicles arrive on the scene in Lower Manhattan.
AP
In this still image taken from video, police and ambulances respond in New York on Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017.
AP/Craig Ruttle
Police stand by as they continue to secure the scene along a bike path after a motorist drove onto the path near the World Trade Center memorial in New York.
AP/Andres Kudacki
Police work near a damaged Home Depot truck after a motorist drove onto a bike path near the World Trade Center memorial, killing at least eight people and injuring nearly a dozen others.
U.S. & World
Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world.
"I hope everyone's ok. Was half a block from me, didn't see it but heard 8-10 quick rounds fired off. Be safe with your kids out there."
The attacker was shot in the abdomen by police after jumping out of the truck wielding what turned out to be a pellet gun in one hand and a paintball gun in the other, and shouting what witnesses said was "Allahu Akbar," Arabic for "God is great," authorities said. The man underwent surgery and was in critical condition but was expected to survive.
The suspect authorities have since identified as Sayfullo Saipov, 29, drove a Home Depot rental pickup truck at least 10 blocks down the West Side Highway bike path. He hit about a dozen pedestrians and bicyclists before crashing into a school bus near Stuyvesant High School and elementary school P.S. 89.
At 3:39 p.m. Groban tweeted again in the aftermath of the attack. "I'm shaking," he tweeted. "That's the corner I was supposed to have my coffee but my dog pulled me into the park half a block away 10 min before shooting."
He also shared a video he took and praised the response from the city's police and fire departments.
"Once I got far enough away I took this video of the quick response from our amazing NYPD and NYFD," he tweeted at 3:43 p.m.
The city's Halloween parade went on as scheduled after the attack, but security was increased, with extra officers, heavy-weapons teams and sand trucks parked as protective barriers along the route.
"Devastated for the victims and their families tonight & inspired by the spirit of this city," Groban tweeted later, at 5:39 p.m. "Sirens and trick or treaters everywhere."
The attack "was intended to break our spirit," Mayor de Blasio tweeted. "But New Yorkers are resilient. We will be undeterred."
Devastated for the victims and their families tonight & inspired by the spirit of this city. Sirens and trick or treaters everywhere. 💙🗽
