DATELINE'S "NOWHERE TO HIDE" TO AIR FRIDAY NOVEMBER 22 AT 8PM/7C
A Gripping Report on the Westgate Mall Attack Including Never Before Seen Video and Exclusive Interviews with Two Young Survivors
November 20, 2013 - On Friday, November 22 at 8pm/7c, NBC News' Dateline will air "Nowhere to Hide," an emotional and in depth report taking viewers inside the Westgate Mall terrorist attack that unfolded in Nairobi, Kenya just two months ago. With exclusive interviews and never-before seen video and stills from inside and outside the mall during the attack, Dateline tells the unforgettable story of two families whose split-second decisions amid the chaos made the difference between life and death.
Katherine and Philip Walton, an American couple living in Kenya with their five children, spoke with NBC News exclusively. Kate Snow sat down with the couple for their first extensive interview since the attack. Katherine took her children, aged one to fourteen years old, to the mall that September afternoon while her husband, Philip, was away on business in the U.S. Katherine relives the day's terrifying events - being separated from her two sons and taking shelter with her three daughters as the gunfire erupted around them. The Walton's young sons speak out for the first time about their narrow escape from death at the hands of the terrorists.
Also, in her first in depth interview with U.S. media, Kenyan mother Faith Wambua gives Dateline her own detailed account of the attack, the challenges she faced to keep her two toddlers safe, and the ingenious ruse she used to stay alive. The men who rescued Katherine and Faith also participate in the report.
Excerpts from the interview follow. If used, mandatory credit NBC's "Dateline" with airdate Friday, November 22.
####
Walton on protecting her toddler daughters, while not knowing if her older sons were safe and alive:
KATE SNOW:
Are you hiding from gunmen?
KATHERINE WALTON:
Yeah, we-- we were laying down on the ground, trying to hide from them so that they couldn't see us.
KATHERINE WALTON:
Portia kept her fingers in her ears. Gigi laid there and she said, "Mom, I want my blanket, and my mouse, and my flashlight." She sleeps with those three things every night. She said she wanted her brothers. And I told her that we'd see them later.
####
Wambua on hiding from the gunmen as they walked through the mall:
FAITH WAMBUA:
I remember at some point I was covering the children, my son's head and my daughter's head -- and I said any bullet would have to pass through me first before it gets to these children.
...
FAITH WAMBUA:
We were right next to a corridor where we could hear them passing from time to time ... But there was no way I was going to change my position.
####
Blaise and Ian Walton were separated from their mother when they first heard gunshots:
BLAISE WALTON:
I just thought, "Ian first. Save him. Me second."
KATE SNOW:
And you headed toward the back of the store.
BLAISE WALTON:
Other people at that time were rushing back. So we followed the crowd.
...
BLAISE WALTON:
I finally just pulled Ian aside, sat him down behind a thing of flour on all s-- there was one by one by one meters of flour on all sides of him.
KATE SNOW:
So kinda like a barricade of flour bags?
BLAISE WALTON:
Yeah, and then there-- we had pulled toilet paper on top of our heads so nobody would even see us.
KATE SNOW:
Why did you need to be hidden?
BLAISE WALTON:
'Cause-- pe-- we didn't know if people were gonna be walking back and looking for us. So we just pulled all stops.
####
David Corvo is the senior executive producer, Liz Cole is the executive producer and Lester Holt is the primary anchor of "Dateline" (Wednesdays at 10pm/9c and Fridays at 8pm/7c). Follow "Dateline NBC" on Facebook and Twitter @datelinenbc.
|