A WYEDEAN businessman who was in a meeting only half a mile away from the terrorist attack on two Christchuch mosques has spoken of his shock and sadness at the horrific events on Friday (March 14).

Patrick Callaghan from Monmouth was on the last day of a week-long work trip to New Zealand when news came through that a gunman was on the loose just four blocks from his company’s office.

The far-right terrorist ultimately shot dead 50 men, women and children and injured around 50 more in a prayer-time attack on two mosques – one of them in an area of Christchurch Mr Callaghan knows well after more than a decade of annual work trips to the city.

“The people have already been through so much with the earthquake eight years ago and my heart goes out to them,” he said back home in Monmouth this week.

“There will undoubtedly be company colleagues who have friends or family who have been touched by this appalling shooting. It’s dreadful.

“I know the area around the Al Noor Mosque really well, beside the city’s main green space, Hagley Park. I’ve been running and walking there, and it’s just yards from the hotel I normally stay in,” said Mr Callaghan. “You can see the golden dome above the streets, it’s quite a landmark.”

More than 100 staff were working at his employer’s office at the time news broke of an armed man on the nearby streets around 1.45pm.

“We were just wrapping up the week with a final meeting before I flew home when someone got a text from their wife saying you need to check the news, which said a gunman was on the loose at the mosque just a short walk away,” he said.

“It was very vague at this point, all we knew was an armed man was moving around nearby. There was no information about casualties.

“But obviously, staff members were worried for their families and friends, it was disturbing news.

“Safety procedures were put in place and the building was locked down, but although they’re well up on this after the 2011 earthquake we had no set procedures for an armed gunman.

“Christchurch is a really pleasant small city. It’s very multi-cultural and its people are really friendly. They all pull together. So for something like this to happen is just shocking,” he added.

“People were going online looking for news updates and checking their familes were safe on their phones,” he added. “We were hearing about injuries now, and although the staff were calm there was a lot of tension.

“After the earthquake there’s a lot of community spirit in the city and you could feel that shared concern.

“Those who were really worried were allowed to go and find their families, although it was described as a ‘moving incident’ and going outside was going to be a risk.

“We were also hearing that schools were now in lockdown and the police had closed roads.”

With his flight back home at 6.45pm, Mr Callaghan left the office at 4.15pm for a four-minute walk to the car.

“We didn’t know whether the gunman had been captured yet and the city was like a ghost town. We were fairly nervous and didn’t hang around – it was a real relief to get to the car,” he said.

“And as we drove, my boss said he’d never seen so little traffic during the Friday rush hour.

“Then when we got to the airport, there were armed police, which I’ve never seen in New Zealand. The atmosphere was very sombre with people checking their phones and tablets for news.

“All domestic and Australia flights were cancelled, and my flight to Dubai was one of the last allowed out.”

And after take off, Mr Callaghan learnt the full horrific scale of the tragedy on BBC World News Live.

“When I saw that more than 40 people had been killed, I was totally shocked and really sad. I just felt so sorry that I was leaving them in their hour of need.”

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“I really felt for thepeople, who’ve had so much to deal with in recent years. They’re still rebuilding from the earthquake and a mass shooting like this is the last thing you’d expect in such a welcoming town.”

Mr Callaghan has been in touch with colleagues in Christchurch since returning, and he says: “I know the community will come together for those families who have lost loved ones. My employers and colleagues will also be doing all they can.

“There’s massive community strength there and my thoughts are with them.”

Australian 28-year-old Brenton Tarrant appeared in court on Saturday accused of carrying out the terror attack on the Al Noor mosque and a second mosque three miles away.

UK charity Penny Appeal has launched an appeal to help the victims and their families at pennyappeal.org

“I really felt for thepeople, who’ve had so much to deal with in recent years.

“They’re still rebuilding from the earthquake and a mass shooting like this is the last thing you’d expect in such a welcoming town.”

The Monmouth man has been in touch with colleagues in Christchurch since returning, and he says: “I know the community will come together for those families who have lost loved ones.

“My employers and colleagues will also be doing all they can to help.

“There’s massive community strength there and my thoughts are with them.”

Australian 28-year-old Brenton Tarrant appeared in court on Saturday accused of carrying out the attack on the Al Noor mosque and a second mosque three miles away.

UK charity Penny Appeal has launched an appeal to help the victims and their families at pennyappeal.org