‘My heart jumped out’: Hong Kong fencer describes terror after being caught in vicinity of deadly Istanbul blast
Asian Games silver medallist Au Sin-ying was sightseeing after first runner-up placing in Turkish competition when fatal explosion went off
Hong Kong fencer Au Sin-ying recalled the terror she felt when she was hundreds of metres away from the site of Tuesday’s suspected suicide bombing in Istanbul, which killed 10 people and injured 15 others.
Au was sightseeing in the Turkish city after participating in a satellite tournament there over the weekend.
The 27-year-old said on her Facebook page that she head a loud bang while taking photos near the Blue Mosque, not far from Sultanahmet Square, where the explosion took place.
READ MORE: Istanbul explosion: at least 10 people killed by ‘suicide bomber’ in popular tourist district
“[I] might be few hundred meters away. I was taking photos and clearly heard the explosion,” Au said. “My heart jumped out and my brain went blank.”
She said she immediately squatted and covered her head with her hands before noticing it could be a bomb explosion and fleeing. “Within one minute, people waved their hands to signal to each other to escape. I followed them to run away.”
The Tuesday morning blast killed 10 people – at least eight of them German tourists – and injured 15 others in the Sultanahmet district, the symbolic heart of Istanbul’s tourism industry.
READ MORE: Killing of eight German tourists in Istanbul draws Merkel deeper into Middle East turmoil
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, although the Islamic State group was suspected to be behind the explosion.
Hong Kong’s Immigration Department said on Wednesday that it had not received any calls for assistance so far from Hongkongers in connection with Tuesday’s blast.
It said it had been liaising with the Chinese consulate-general in Istanbul and would continue to monitor the situation.
Au finished as the first runner-up in the sabre category of the Turkish competition held between January 9 and 10. She won a silver medal in the women’s sabre at the 2010 Asian Games.
