Surgeon says colleague's actions likely saved police officer's life after Krakow market shooting
Two surgeons who responded to a mass shooting in Krakow treated both the attacker and injured officers, with one surgeon crediting his colleague for stopping a police officer's bleeding and improving his chances of survival.
Two surgeons who were dining in central Krakow with their families rushed to the scene of a mass shooting in the city’s market square on Saturday. Professor Michal Pędziwiatr and Dr. Mateusz Wierdak treated the injured attacker and several police officers, including Senior Police Constable Jakub Kulik, who had been shot in the chest.
"When it comes to saving lives, it doesn't matter who is who," Pędziwiatr told the news outlet Fakt.
According to Pędziwiatr, Wierdak applied immediate pressure to the officer's wound, a step he described as crucial while waiting for an ambulance. Pędziwiatr then arranged for the officer to be transferred to John Paul II Hospital, where a specialist thoracic and cardiac surgery team could provide further care.
"I insisted they take him there because, in my opinion, he had the best chance of survival there, where there were specialists for precisely this type of injury," Pędziwiatr said.
The attack left six people dead and sixteen injured. Victims included four women and two men, among them four Polish nationals, a British man and an unidentified non-Polish citizen. Police have also found three bodies at the suspected gunman's apartment, identified as his parents and sister. The National Public Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation, with a unit specializing in terrorist offences leading the probe.