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Texas Travelers In Las Vegas Sunday Night Are Thankful To Be Home

Ryan Poppe
Las Vegas Bagage Claim At Austin-Bergstrom International Airport

Texas travelers making their way back from Las Vegas Monday, are just thankful to be home and safe.  

As Gentry Bowen stepped off a Las Vegas flight in Austin he was immediately greeted with an extended hug from his mom. 

“She just said, “I’m glad you are okay, I am glad you’re safe” and I said, I am too, it could’ve been so much worse," Bowen says.

Bowen’s flight was one of the first to depart Las Vegas Monday morning.

The 25-year old, in Vegas on business, decided to check out “The Strip” Sunday night -- when his excitement was cut short by gunshots followed by screams.

“In the distance heard what I thought was the fountain, maybe something going off, but end up seeing a wall of people running down the street in mass, so I just started running," Bowen says.

Bowen was able to make it safely to his hotel, where he booked the first available flight back to Austin.

“Not going to conference this week, but really thankful I’m okay, thankful that it could’ve been worse if first responders weren’t right there.  But it was pure pandemonium last night," Bowen explains.

Sunday night’s shooting is being called the worst mass shooting in modern history.

Ryan started his radio career in 2002 working for Austin’s News Radio KLBJ-AM as a show producer for the station's organic gardening shows. This slowly evolved into a role as the morning show producer and later as the group’s executive producer.