VANCOUVER, Wash. (KATU) – A Washington state teenager is being praised for helping to protect others during a Halloween shooting at a mall.

While working behind the counter of an escape room, 16-year-old Bronwyn Cruden rushed to the store’s glass door to lock it after hearing gunshots.

In surveillance video of the incident, Cruden is seen locking the door as frightened people run past the door for cover.

As Cruden made his way to the back of the store, a family appeared at the door, trying to get inside.

Cruden then heroically returned to unlock the door and help the family seek shelter.

“I don’t know that I would definitely call myself a hero,” she said.

But when given the chance to shelter in place or help protect others, the teenager didn’t hesitate.

The stories that have emerged in the wake of the Vancouver Mall shooting highlight just how far people will go to escape danger.

A man jumped from the second floor to the first floor just to escape.

“I was so scared I started hanging, then I jumped down and started running,” he said. “I had too much adrenaline, so I didn’t feel anything. I just started running.”

Brianne Stoner knows the feeling too. He was trying to take his niece trick-or-treating when he saw a bunch of people running towards them.

“Lots of terrified mothers dragging their children and all I could think was we had to run,” she said.

Stoner took his family and hid behind the mall, sprinting across the parking lot and trying to hide in the bushes.

She said a resident of one of the nearby apartments gave them access through a gated area, where they stayed until it was safe.

All the people were just thankful to get out alive.

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