Pta school choir misses deadly Turkish attack by hours
Some 100 grade 8 to grade 12 pupils from Hoërskool Menlo Park landed at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport shortly after a deadly terrorist attack was carried out at the international terminal.
Some 100 members of the acclaimed Hoërskool Menlo Park choir arrived safely in Russia after narrowly escaping a deadly attack at Turkey’s largest airport on Tuesday night.
“They arrived safely in St Petersburg late on Wednesday afternoon from where their tour will start,” deputy headmaster Nico Erasmus told Rekord.
Flying on Turkish Airlines en route to St Petersburg in Russia to participate in an international choir competition, the choir landed at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport shortly after three suicide bombers killed 41 people and injured 239 others at the airport.
The aircraft was still in the air when three terrorists, armed with automatic rifles, opened fire on people in the busy arrivals terminal before detonating the suicide jackets they were wearing.
The choir, accompanied by six faculty members, had been rushed to an area of safety at the airport at their arrival, not knowing the details of the deadly attack that had taken place shortly before they landed.
“They were aware that a terrorist attack had taken place at Ataturk Airport, but the details of the exact extent of the deadly attack only came to their knowledge once they landed in St Petersburg,” Erasmus said.
#Turkey today: Nine suspected ISIS members detained in Izmir. More raids in #Istanbul. Not clear if operations linked to airport attack.
— Hümeyra Pamuk (@humeyra_pamuk) June 30, 2016
He said the choir members were dealing well with their close shave and parents and family members had been receiving regular updates about their welfare throughout the ordeal.
The choir will tour Russia for 15 days before returning to South Africa.
The Hoërskool Menlo Park contingent departed from OR Tambo International Airport on 18h15 on Tuesday via Turkey to St Petersburg.
According to Erasmus, the choir missed their connecting flight from Turkey to St Petersburg as a result of the chaos at Ataturk Airport. They however managed to get seats on a later flight after being kept in a Turkish Airlines secure building.
The choir members, girls and boys from grade 8 to grade 12, will end their tour in Sochi in Russia.
Thank you #Europe for the strong show of solidarity with #Turkey.
Together we can root out terrorism… pic.twitter.com/cO51He6v70
— Mehmet Simsek (@memetsimsek) June 30, 2016
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