‘If I didn’t get out, everyone would die’

A HERO yoga teacher who relived her desperate bid to save girls from the Southport killer said "if I didn't get out, everyone would die". On July 29 last year teenage killer Axel Rudakubana burst into a Taylor Swift-themed dance class at The Hart Space armed with a knife.

Image Credit: The Sun [Woman with long dark hair looking downcast.]

He murdered Elsie, seven, as well as Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, and Bebe King, six, and injured several others. Rudakubana, 19, was jailed for life to serve a minimum of 52 years in prison last month. Yoga teacher Leanne Lucas, who had organised the dance class, was knifed five times while she bravely protected children as the horror unfolded.

Image Credit: The Sun [Mugshot of Axel Rudakubana.]

She was able to help several girls out and shield them from the attacker - while she bled from stab wounds to her spine, head, lung, ribs, and shoulder blade. Speaking to the BBC's Panorama, the heroic teacher said: "I just knew that if I didn't get out, everyone was going to die.

Image Credit: The Sun [Woman holding a small dog.]

"He was bigger than me. And I just thought: I need to get some help. "So we all run towards the door. We were shouting 'run!' I called 999 on the landing and I asked for the police.". She recalled how the monster was grabbing the children before she shouted "who is that".

Image Credit: The Sun [Photo of Elsie Dot Stancombe.]

To her horror, Rudakubana then set his focus on Leanne. "I just felt something go in my back. My brain just said 'he's got me'," said the dance teacher shaking. Once Leanne had escaped, she begged members of the public to "go and get the children". She told how she felt her body failing her, while her mind was still "going 100 miles and hour".

Image Credit: The Sun [Alice da Silva Aguiar, a young girl wearing a pink cowboy hat and outfit.]

In the wake of violent riots across the country sparked by misinformation, Leanne added how she was "scared of everybody". "And still thinking it was all my fault. If I hadn't arranged the day, if I had never advertised in certain places, if I hadn't used that studio," she said.

Another Southport killer survivor, a 14-year-old girl who has been called Sarah to protect her identity, has also broken her silence. Both Leanne and Sarah were treated in hospital for life-threatening injuries after the attack. The teen recalled how she pushed children down stairs to help get them out.

Image Credit: The Sun [A woman and a man sitting side-by-side, looking concerned.]

"I thought that he wasn't going to stop until he killed everyone. I thought that he wanted to kill us all," she added. Leanne's quick-thinking colleague Heidi Liddle also escaped uninjured after locking some of the children inside a toilet. And, businessman Jonathan Hayes who was working in the office next door, was attacked after he ran inside and bravely tried to stop the carnage.

Leanne has previously spoken about the trauma, in a heartbreaking statement at Rudakubana's sentencing hearing. She said: "As a 36-year-old woman I cannot give myself compassion or accept praise, as how can I live knowing I survived when children died.

"I spent many months thinking about the incident 24 hours a day seven days a week. "Just when I felt I could settle and try to move forward, the trauma of that day is now back at the forefront. "I constantly see his face; new memories have appeared, and this will continue to happen for the rest of my life.".

Read more on the tragedy. Leanne said she has been affected both physically and mentally by the horror and has been left with scars that serve as "visual daily reminders" of what Rudubakana did to the victims. She also revealed how she had to endure three stays in hospital and undergo multiple surgeries.

Leanne continued: "The trauma of being both a victim and a witness has been horrendous. "There are times when I will spiral into trauma and the effect this has had on those close to me is unforgivable. "The impact this has had on me can be summed up by one word: trauma.

"He targeted us because we were women and girls, vulnerable and easy prey. "To discover that he had always set out to hurt the vulnerable is beyond comprehensible.". This comes after the heartbroken families of Elsie, Alice, and Bebe, bravely spoke out about the tragedy earlier this month.

Speaking to The Sunday Times, Bebe's dad cast his mind back to the horror. He said after hearing news of the attack, he thought Bebe might have still been at home safe. The 43-year-old, who works for HM Revenue & Customs, said: "We had given people Bebe’s description. When that person came towards me, I could feel the blood drain from me and I went cold.

"I knew she was going to tell me something. And she did. ‘Are you Bebe’s dad?’ As soon as I said yes she said she had passed away.”. Bebe’s mum recalled how she was in Marks & Spencer when her husband called to tell her. She ran outside and got into a taxi, which dropped her to the scene.

When she heard the devastating news, she fell to her knees screaming. Also speaking to the Sunday Times, Elsie's mum, Jenni Stancombe, recalled the unthinkable events. She and her husband David dropped Elsie, a passionate Swiftie, off at the class at 10am.

The parent of another girl in the class had offered to have Elsie round to play afterwards, and agreed to drop her back round at 3pm. Shortly before midday, Jenni got a call from the other mum who said: "Something awful has happened. Somebody’s stabbed the kids.".