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Fifth Third shooting survivor shares photos of her recovery

153 views · Published 19 October 2018 · 0:45 · Indexed 7 October 2026

Channel: LOCAL 12 · 2018 · News & Politics

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CINCINNATI (WKRC) - 40 days after surviving being shot 12 times at the Fifth Third Center, Whitney Austin shared photos that show her journey of recovery.

"My amazing UC Medical Center trauma doctor told me last week that my body is healing so well. Here is a picture to prove it! The incision on the right is from September 19th and the one on the left is from today. #whitneystrong #cincystrong #universityofcincinnatimedicalcenter," said Austin in a post on the Whitney Strong Foundation Facebook page.

The two pictures show a before-and-after comparison of Austin's arm. What was once a line of stapled-together flesh that ran from her wrist past her elbow is now a scar.

On Thursday, September 6th, three people lost their lives during an active shooter incident at the Fifth Third Center near Fountain Square. Fountain Square is considered by many to be the heart of Cincinnati. The attack also seriously injured two others. Austin was one of those two.

Austin was walking into the building after her commute from her home in Louisville. She was on a conference call and had headphones in her ear. She did not notice anything was amiss at first. She was shot as she walked through the revolving door entrance of the center. She was shot 12 times in the arm and chest. Other bullets grazed her neck, left foot and breasts.

Luis Calderon, Prudhvi Raj Kandepi and Richard Newcomer were killed that day. Brian Sarver was also shot, but like Austin, he survived.

The body of Prudhvi Raj Kandepi was returned to India to his loved ones. Richard Newcomer's family released a statement afterwards, saying that Newcomer would want them to focus on the good things as well as thank the first responders who undoubtedly saved many lives that day by stopping the shooter.

Whitney Austin has started the "Whitney Strong Foundation" which is "dedicated to reducing gun violence by promoting, advocating and supporting responsible gun ownership," according to their website.

Here is a statement that Austin has labeled as "Our Beginning" on her website:

On the morning of September 6th, 2018, I was immediately hit by bullets as I entered the revolving door at Fifth Third Bank headquarters. As I attempted to reach for my phone, I was shot again - 12 times in total. Resolving to play dead to increase my chance of survival, I slumped my body into the bottom of the revolving door and my mind started to race.
For months I had thought about volunteering with organized efforts to reduce gun violence. In fact, I received text messages and felt guilty that I signed up just to ignore them. As I cowered in that revolving door I thought about those text messages. I thought about how angry I was that I hadn’t done anything to prevent this exact situation from happening. Now, as a survivor, how do I reconcile that I lived as a result of nearly thousands of things going right and others died as a result of nearly thousands of things going wrong? I can’t. I can only say that I feel an undeniable force pushing me to tackle gun reform.

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