Micayla and Eric Coughlin, Rochester, Michigan parents take 7 bullets between them protecting their two young sons during splash pad shooting, saving their lives as they now face uphill recovery battle.
A Michigan couple who sought to save their two young sons, ages 2 and 7 months old as gunfire suddenly erupted at a local splash pad were shot a combined total of seven times.
Micayla and Eric Coughlin were month the 9 individuals shot and injured as they sought to shield their two young sons as Michael William Nash, 42, unleashed no less than 28 gunshots, stopping and reloading his 9mm handgun as young families sought to enjoy the summer attraction, Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad near their home at around 5 p.m, Saturday.
The two parents who managed to save their young sons, and who escaped unharmed are now undergoing treatment after they were rushed to a hospital.
🇺🇸 | Authorities have identified the suspect in the Michigan park splash pad shooting that injured nine, including two children, as 42-year-old Michael William Nash. pic.twitter.com/ZUGgVCAB8Z
— Breaking News (@PlanetReportHQ) June 16, 2024
Hero parents put their own lives at risk to save their two boys
Read a GoFundMe post created for the young family: ‘Shortly after grabbing ice cream they walked to the splash pad and were not even there for a minute when Micayla and Eric heard gunfire. In an effort to save their children, they each grabbed a child to protect them.’
‘Because of their heroic actions, their children were protected and able to go home that evening,’ the GoFundMe continued. ‘Micayla and Eric face a long and unknown recovery from this unthinkable tragedy.’
As of Sunday night, the fundraiser has raised more than $30,836.
The Coughlins and seven other park-goers were wounded in the shooting carried out by 42-year-old Michael William Nash, who later killed himself during a police standoff. at a nearby Shelby Township mobile home where he lived with his mother.
The gun violence left an 8-year-old boy critically injured after he was shot in the head and his 4-year-old brother, in stable condition after he suffered a gunshot wound to the thigh, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said, according to the Detroit News.
The children’s 39-year-old mother, who was also shot in the legs and abdomen remained in critical condition on Sunday.
Other victims were all 30 or older, including a 78-year-old man, WXYZ reported. They were all in stable condition.
No known shooting motive
A motive for the shooting remains unclear.
‘In terms of the “why,” I don´t know,’ Bouchard said, adding that the shooting ‘appears very random.’
‘It appears like the individual pulled up, exited a vehicle, approached the splash pad, opened fire, reloaded, opened fire, reloaded, left,’ he said.
The suspect was ‘apparently in no rush. Just calmly walked back to his car,’ he added.
Police are still investigating why Nash decided to open fire on random strangers. They have not located a note, manifesto, or other evidence that offers an explanation, ClickonDetroit reported.
The 9mm handgun used in the mass shooting was registered to Nash, with police also recovering an assault rifle and another handgun at the Shelby Township mobile home. The gunman’s mother was not home at the time of the hours long stand-off before the gunman was later found deceased from a self inflicted gunshot wound.
The weekend shooting marks the 223rd mass shooting in the United States year to date according to the Gun Violence Archives.
