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SALT LAKE CITY — As news of the Westgate Mall terrorist attack in Nairobi quickly spread, one Kenyan native living in Utah tried all day to contact his family and friends with no success.
"We have no idea what's going on," said Amram Musungu, as he combed the Kenyan news online.
He said he fears for their safety and hopes the communication black-out does not mean they are in danger.
"It's very sad," he said.
The Kenyan government reported victims as young as two-years-old, as young as his own children.
"I have a brother who lives not very far away from there," Musungu said.
He has another brother and cousins who also live nearby with families of their own.
"I've been trying the whole day long, trying to get in touch with my family there," he said.
Usually it's no problem calling Kenya. He often talks with family members on Saturday. Today: not even a text.
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39 dead in Kenya mall attack; hostages still held
Terrified shoppers huddled in back hallways and prayed they would not be found by the Islamic extremist gunmen lobbing grenades and firing assault rifles inside Nairobi's top mall Saturday.But, it's chaotic right now.
"I have no idea if any of my family members might have been in that mall," he said.
The attacks killed at least 39 and wounded 150, including American citizens. Al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda-linked militant group based in Somalia, claimed responsibility. The group called the attacks retribution for military action by Kenya inside Somalia in 2011. The group said it was now shifting the battlefield to Kenya. Kenyan police say they are treating the assault as a "terrorist attack."
Witnesses said the gunmen asked victims they had cornered if they were Muslim: If the answer was yes, several witnesses said, those people were free to go. The non-Muslims were not.
The militant group said its fighters entered the upscale Westgate Mall at around noon and were still inside more than nine hours later. Kenyan military special forces had entered the mall in an effort to end the standoff.
We had to go through by the entry of the mall; they had to check our bag.
–Amram Musungu
Musungu came to Salt Lake to attend LDS Business College 15 years ago. Some may even recognize him — he's sung in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir for 11 years.
Last year when Musungu visited Nairobi with his family they went that mall.
"We went there a couple of times when we were in Kenya," he said.
Musungu said it is a multi-level, upscale mall that attracts tourists and large crowds on Saturdays.
He and his 4-year-old daughters both wear soccer jerseys of the Kenyan national team they bought at the mall. He wonders how the attackers made it past mall security entering the facility.
"We had to go through by the entry of the mall; they had to check our bag," he said.
Musungu said he has even more questions about Kenyan national security.
"They should step up security measures in bigger places like that," he said.
Musungu said he fears the Somali militants will get even bolder.
"I think the Kenyan government could do better."
So, he waits for word from his family and prays for the victims and their families.
