It was a night that promised to bring joy and light to Sydney's iconic Bondi Beach as crowds of Jewish families gathered at a park to celebrate the first night of Hanukkah, also known as the festival of light.
They were among thousands of other swimmers, surfers and sunbathers who had flocked to Australia's most famous beach on a scorching summer's afternoon.
But not long after the Hanukkah event kicked off at 17:00 local time and the first free donuts were doled out, festive music was drowned out by the sounds of screams and the echo of gunshots.
It's unclear exactly when the first shot was fired, but the initial call to police was made at 18:47. In the minutes that followed, two gunmen would kill at least 15 people, and injure dozens more, authorities said.
A local high school teacher, Chavi, told the BBC she dropped to the ground to protect her baby as bullets were flying above us.
It was pandemonium and chaos, another attendee, who identified himself as Barry, said as he described watching a throng of people trying to escape the scene that had suddenly devolved into a nightmare.
In one video verified by the BBC, upbeat music from the Hanukkah event can still be heard in the background as people crouch down, interspersed with shrieks and shots. Panic soon spread from the park to the sand, where videos showed terrified beachgoers running away from the gunfire.
Screams, honking car horns and ambulance sirens filled the air in the next chaotic minutes.
A nearly 11-minute video provides perhaps the clearest timeline of the attack. It captures the moment the two gunmen, Sajid Akram, 50, and his son Naveed, 24, allegedly began their assault from a pedestrian bridge overlooking the park.
Eyewitnesses reported that within minutes the streets were filled with law enforcement and emergency services responding to the tragedy.
Hours later, a local hero emerged in the form of Ahmed al Ahmed, who intervened and disarmed one of the gunmen, saving countless lives in what can only be explained as a moment of bravery.
As investigations continue, local officials and families must come to terms with both the loss of life and the eerie transformation of their joyful gathering into a site of violence.
