this is "nightline." >> tonight, in their own words. >> this is our first concert, like outside with a lot of people. we were just like so pumped for it. >> when a day of celebration became a night of survival. >> go! everybody go! >> when love turned to heartbreak. >> he just wrapped his arms around me from behind, and that's when i felt him get shot in the back. >> and strangers became heroes. >> i said, if you can make it out there, i promise you, i'll make sure you're safe. >> those who survived the horror in las vegas. >> i just thought, if i'm going to die, i want my kids -- to know that this is what happened. >> lives

face of evil. now a deeper look at the faces of good. >> i saw every one of these police officers running towards the danger. >> and the tearful reunion of a teenage girl with the guardian angel who saved her life. >> this special edition of "nightline," massacre in las vegas, will be right back. ralph northam: i'm ralph northam, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad. narrator: ed gillespie wants to end a woman's right to choose.

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"nightline." "massacre in las vegas." >> good evening. thanks for joining us. it's been a daunting week for america. the attack in las vegas has forced us all to confront the worst of humanity. and in our struggle to understand, put ourselves into the mind of a deranged killer. but tonight we are also reminded that evil is outnumbered. there were 22,000 people at that concert. they came to dance and sing and celebrate life. and tonight we celebrate them. >> it's relaxation central. there's this kind of legacy of las vegas as being the place where something secret happens. maybe you go on your own. but las vegas is also the place where people go in groups to have a wonderful time. and they dance and maybe they gamble, they hear music. the route 91 harvest festival had been a success for a number of years. 20,000

concert. a great cross-section of americans who all wanted to come to that festival. and it drew all kinds of people. >> my name is heather melton and i live in big sandy, tennessee. sonny says that when he first saw me that i stole his heart. we kind of like to do some traveling and this year our thing has been going to concerts. we were very excited to come to the route 91 festival. >> my name is dean macaulay, a professional firefighter in washington state. we go to this event every year, route 91 harvest fest in las vegas. it's what we do. >> my name is gianna bacha, i'm a cheerleader. my sister natalia bacha, she's sassy like me. the best thing about being a twin that is we're always together, we're never alone, so you always have a best friend with you. >> my name's lisa fein and i have two children. i'm a professional organizer and personal

and i live in roseville, california. >> i'm briana scoggin. >> i'm russell bleck. >> we got engaged in new york. we were sailing and he popped the question. we were just celebrating the engagement still. got free passes to the festival. >> september 29th, at about 11:50 in the morning, we had just landed in vegas. for three days i was just ready to get on my country outfit and have fun. we got to the venue the first day. there were so many bands. we were excited, number one especially for sonny, was to see eric church. ♪ >> the thing about these country concerts is it's all tailgate, it's all party. >> you walk in, i'm looking at my phone for my list of all the t-shirts and stuff that people want back home. >> my sister and i were really excited. this is our first concert. outside with

we were so pumped for it. >> w and wanted to watch some football. and then just kind of hung out until we decided to go over to the venue. >> around 7:45, we left our house here and it takes about 15 minutes to get to the strip. went to the venue and then got dropped off right out front. >> the venue is set up incredible. you just felt like you were safe because we went through metal detectors, they looked in our purses. >> there's so many people. like everyone is really nice to each other. even random people. they'd come up and dance with you. it was really fun. >> that day was really amazing. there was a lot of people there. there was a lot of different bands playing. ♪ ♪ >> we're all just excited, we're happy. and the music's incredible. it just --

our hearts and lives. all us girls like those cowboys that sing those cowboy songs that bring about love and fun and happiness. ♪ ♪ >> i just remember, it was such a great vibe at that point. >> crazy! ♪ >> all of a sudden journey came on, you hear this entire crowd start singing. ♪ ♪ >> we're dancing as much as you could, shoulder to shoulder. ♪ ♪ it kind of was a throwback to the '60s of peace, love and happiness. >> every year that we go, we stand in the same

next to the vip booth. this particular day we the other side. the other side of the stage. and -- that was a game changer for us. >> i think one of the most moving parts of the whole three days was they sang "god bless america," the whole crowd was singing at the top of their lungs and they had their phones lit up. ♪ god bless america >> i had no sense that we were in any danger at all. it felt so safe. >> you see as far as the eye can see, just shoulder to shoulder people. so i was getting that on videotape. kind did of to show how big the crowd was. >> jason aldean started, i was so excited to see him. ♪ >> we were in the front row enjoying jason aldean. and in the video we are so happy.

and everybody's just thrill the. >> we took a photo. photo, the contrast o. was so dramatic. i mean, it's the calm before the storm. you had not a care in the world. two minutes later, literally two minutes later, i looked at the time stamp, and everything changed. like with an instant. >> all hell broke loose. [ gunshots ] >> i turned to sonny, was that a gun? he said, i don't think so. because the music was very loud. >> i heard a -- like a crackle sound. it was so odd. i've been around firearms my whole life. but i didn't think it was a weapon at all. i thought it was just some feedback maybe from the amplifiers or something. so i continued to shoot. then i hear somebody, was that a gun? i was like, on second thought, that sounded like an ar-15 from

>> that was an ar! [ gunshots ] >> it sounded like something out of -- you hear in the news with afghanistan or iraq. any of the movies we see now. just -- click, click, click, click, click, click. >> it's not a real gun, it doesn't sound like a real gun. >> it is a real gun! [ bleep ]! >> that's me screaming that it is a real gun. and within seconds you could tell, no, that is not fireworks, that is somebody just spraying bullets down on people, innocent people. >> get down. stay down! >> i said, i think that's guns. that's when jason aldean ran off the stage. people started running. >> run! >> when we come back, news stories of survival and heroism. and you don't want to miss the teenage girl seriously wounded, reunited with the man who helped save her life.

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this special edition of "nightline," "massacre in las vegas," continues. [ gunshots ] i was pinned down and i couldn't get out of there. you could hear the whooh, whooh sounds. you had no idea where the gunman was, where the shots were being fired from. >> please, please! >> get out, get out! >> my boyfriend threw me to the floor, trying to protect me. it felt like a metal medicine ball, like a 100-pound medic

so i got hit or i got shot. >> and i decided that i wanted to record every single thing that was happening. i just thought, if i'm going to die, i want my kids and my family -- to know -- to know that this is what happened. >> i said to sonny, we need to get down. he said, no, we can't get down because we'll get trampled. that's when he -- just wrapped his arms around me from behind and we started running. and that's when i felt him get shot in the back. and we fell to the ground. i felt the impact of the bullet in his body. because he was holding me. i think he could hear me at first. but i couldn't tell where

lot of blood. i couldn't tell. i couldn't tell, and he couldn't talk to me. i couldn't feel a pulse. so i started doing cpr. and there was still bullets flying all around us. >> you're seeing people plugging holes with their fingers. like to stop the blood, you know? and ex-military, telling everyone where to go, what to do. stay low, keep moving, don't stop. i saw every one of these police officers running towards the danger. it was all survival but you saw the best out of everybody. >> i heard a medic scream she needed help, she was trying to start a line on natalia. >> it was really scary thinking about like i don't know if my sister's like dead or -- just like okay or -- i don't know where she is, so -- >> i said, where's your mom? she said, shot in the back. i said, if you can make it out there,

sure you're safe. i said, natalia,ll figure it ou. we hid behind the suburban. i found a little lawn chair that was underneath it. and i put her in it. and we had a tactical guy come by and say, you guys have to get down. and i'm holding an iv bag up. >> you guys okay? >> i need to get her transport. >> sat down, can i please call my dad? >> i called her dad, gave her the phone. she was so calm. said, dad, i've been shot, i'm going to be okay. and i took the phone and i said, sir, i'm going to take care of your daughter, i don't know how i'm going to get her to the hospital but we'll get there. >> we have a team that's on the second floor of mandalay bay, we're slowly working up. >> the firing has stopped at this point. it gives the s.w.a.t. team a time to take a breath. and they begin to assess the situation. because what they don't want to do is

>> i'm at the suspect's door. i need everyboto b type of resp from this guy, to see if he's in there or he's actually moved ea, breach. >> they use explosives that are particularly designed to blow doors. so it blows it back in the room, toward the bad guy. it creates such a blast that it also allows law enforcement to immediately come in behind the blast. >> we are clearing this room, we have one suspect down. >> room 135? >> affirmative, one suspect down and 135, i have the floor. >> he had killed himself. he used a handgun. right in his mouth. >> do we have any other wounded people you can take? >> two men came and helped me carry sonny off the field into a truck. those two men performed cpr on sonny the entire way to the hospital. we ended up at a small hospital that was a nontrauma center. we were the first people there.

got the guy to come over, opened up his back door. put natalia in the back. she was getting numb. i pulled out my phone. searching for pictures of my dog and my wife and my son. and she was just immediately lit up. >> it was so cute. because his family's so beautiful. and i love dogs. so he showed me his dog. it's white and fluffy. >> when we were rolling into the hospital, i saw my sister and natalia in the wheelchair. and she was hooked up on iv, i believe. and she was just like crying. there was blood all over. but i knew she was okay. so we like said we loved you, i love you, held hands. we never really do that, so that was different. >> it wasn't very long before i knew he had passed. really in my heart, i feel like it happened on the field. and they pronounced him. and i was right outside of the room. when they did. and i just kissed him

him. it's like you can this be real? how can i come here to have a good time with my loved one and leave without them? we're hoping to go home today. just waiting for the mortuary to release sonny. in my wildest dreams i would never have imagined this scenario. i'm going back with two suitcases. and my husband's going to be in the cargo. this is not how i want to fly back with him. it's just -- almost unbearable to think about. >> the reason i'm here tonight is because of heather melton, her husband sonny, who died. >> i want more people to know the name

know whoever that guy is. who shot us. >> the only way i've ever fixed anything that's been broken in me is with music. so i wrote a song. ♪ and when the morning sun >> this shirt has kind of become a symbol of him, to me. and i'll always remember him wearing this shirt. i plan on burying sonny in this shirt. ♪ i ask the god of all knowing wisdom ♪ ♪ why you and why not me >> it's very, very emotional. even coming back to this hospital. it's a lot of -- a lot of stuff happened here. i want to give you a hug because i didn't give you a hug for four days.

how are you doing? you look fantastic. >> thank you for coming. >> you're amazing. >> thank you. >> it's so awesome to see you. >> you too. >> this is your sister? >> yes, this is gianna. >> i'm dean. i've replayed that night in my head a million times. i'll never, ever forget your spirit, your ability to stay calm. >> he will always have that place in my heart. this guy really did save my life. >> a hero's welcome. th ue test? yep, and my teeth are yellow. i mean i knew they weren't perfect, but, ugh. oh well, all hope is lost! oh thanks! clearly my whitening toothpaste is not cutting it. time for whitestrips. crest glamorous white whitestrips are the only ada-accepted whitening strips proven to be safe and effective. they work below the enamel surface to whiten 25x better than a leading whitening toothpaste. hey, nice smile!

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it was after the charleston church shooting that country music star maren morris wrote a song called "dear hate." she could never quite find the right time to release it. then just hours after the las vegas shooting, it became her defiant response. we leave you tonight with powerful images from las vegas and her reminder that love indeed conquers all. good night, america.

♪ dear love you were there in the garden when i ran from your voice ♪ ♪ i hear you every morning through the chaos and the noise ♪ ♪ you whisper down through history and echo through these halls ♪ ♪ hate to tell you love's going to conquer all ♪ >> hey, everybody, it's whiz kids week. today, we're playing our game with some very bright kids who've worked hard in school, and now they're hoping all that hard work is going to pay off in a very big way because they're here to play "who wants to be a millionaire." [cheers and applause] [dramatic music] ♪

welcome to "millionaire." are you guys ready for whiz kids? [cheers and applause] well, from new orleans, louisiana, let's welcome back kaden oqueli-white. [cheers and applause] the pride of new orleans. you're looking sharp. i like the new ensemble. you're looking good. >> thank you. >> and your game's looking pretty good. you're at $7,000 already. >> whoo! >> you still have two lifelines as we get back to your game today and we try to add some money to that total, so let's play "who wants to be a millionaire." [cheers and applause] [dramatic music] ♪ we start you off today with a $10,000 question. here it is. biologically speaking, which of the following falls under the scientific category of megafauna? >> well, fauna, to me, just