Imran Yousuf was working as a bouncer at the Pulse night club catering to the gay community in Orlando, Florida.
Imran Yousuf was working as a bouncer at the Pulse night club catering to the gay community in Orlando, Florida.
ORLANDO, Fla. (Diya TV) — Imran Yousuf, a former U.S. Marine of Indian origin, is being hailed as a hero after his efforts saved dozens of lives during Sunday’s shooting massacre at Pulse nightclub.
The 24-year-old Yousuf was working as a bouncer at the nightclub when the shots began to ring out. He helped more than 60 people by opening the doors of a room that the panicked partygoers had locked themselves into after Omar Mateen began firing.
“The initial one was three or four (shots). That was a shock. Three of four shots go off and you could tell it was a high caliber” Yousuf told CBS News. “Everyone froze, I’m here in the back and I saw people start pouring into the back hallway, and they just sardine pack everyone.”
“There was only one choice. Either we all stay there and we all die, or I could take the chance, and I jumped over to open that latch and we got everyone that we can out of there,” said Yousuf, who served in Afghanistan.
Despite his efforts, Yousuf said he’s no hero and only wishes he could have saved more lives during the incident.
“I wish I could have saved more to be honest. There are a lot of people that are dead …there are a lot of people that are dead,” he said weeping.
He and his brother served in the Marines for six years, both served during the war in the middle east, which spanned from 2001 through 2014. Yousuf, decorated with the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, Korean Defense Service Medal and Afghanistan Campaign Medal, was an engineer equipment electrical system technician in the Marines from 2010 until 2016, and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2011.
