A tragic link has been revealed in the horrific Bondi Junction Westfield stabbing, as it emerges a lifeguard who tried to help and the fatally injured mother who handed her baby over to strangers were friends.
Mother Ash Good was pushing her daughter in a stroller through the shopping center when the violence occurred around 3.30pm on Saturday.
A 40-year-old man armed with a knife stabbed more than a dozen people, killing Mrs Good and five others. Her nine-month-old daughter and at least 11 other people were seriously injured.
Lifeguard Andrew Reid from Bondi Rescue was at the shopping center and gave horrifying accounts of the events.
Speaking on Channel 9 on Sunday morning, Reid said he saw that Ms Good was seriously injured.
Ash Good was murdered just hours after posting this photo of her and her baby Harriet (pictured)
Lifeguard Andrew Reid from Bondi Rescue was at the shopping center and treated the injured, including his friend Ms Good.
‘She just wanted to be a mother. She was a beautiful person,” Mr Reid said.
He had also heard the story of Mrs. Good giving her baby to strangers for help, and called those actions brave.
The lifeguard said he was trying not to think about his friend’s condition before her death.
Speaking to Sky News on Saturday night, Mr Reid said: “When I looked down at level 4, there was a lady down there, there was a lot of blood.”
Reid got a retail worker to open a roll-up security door so he could help the injured woman.
“There were already two other people helping… and we all started working on this girl, looking for stab wounds,” Reid said.
‘When I looked down, there were some sort of victims every 50 metres.
‘On the other victim closest to us, there was a lot of blood. She was really bad.
‘It was quite chaotic. There were police running everywhere and we didn’t know if they had caught the perpetrator.’
Mr Reid and Ms Good are well known in the Bondi area health and fitness communities.
A 2020 Instagram post by Mr Reid shows them at the Bondi Icebergs swimming club after a long race.
A passer-by armed with a bollard attempts to stop the gunman (pictured) on an escalator at Westfield Bondi.
In the clip, waves crash over the couple and another woman, as they appear to laugh and jump.
Ms Good had commented on the post: “Very funny.”
Good’s family released a statement Sunday following the 38-year-old’s tragic death.
“Today we are recovering from the terrible loss of Ashlee, a beautiful mother, daughter, sister, partner, friend, an exceptional human being and much more,” it said.
“We appreciate the good wishes and thoughts from members of the Australian public who have expressed great love for Ashlee and our baby girl.”
Ms Good’s nine-month-old baby was also stabbed and remains in hospital in a serious but stable condition.
“We are very grateful for the expert care and attention of the Sydney Children’s Hospital medical team,” the statement read.
‘We would also like to thank the New South Wales Police for their kindness and diligence in this tragedy and the emergency services for getting our baby the care he needed as quickly as possible.
“To the two men who held and cared for our baby when Ashlee couldn’t, words cannot express our gratitude.”
‘We are struggling to accept what has happened. “We would appreciate peace and privacy while we work on this as a family.”
As of Sunday morning, there are 12 people in hospital with serious and moderate injuries, New South Wales Police Minister Yasmin Catley said.
The knife-wielding man was shot dead by NSW Police Inspector Amy Scott, who the Prime Minister described as a hero.
“I don’t think we’ve seen better police work than yesterday,” Catley told Sky News.
The attacker was a 40-year-old Queensland man, the minister said. It had previously been confirmed that the police knew him.