Michigan parents who shielded their infant, toddler from gunfire among 9 victims of waterpark shooting

On Saturday, a gunman walked up to a popular water park in Rochester Hills, Michigan and opened fire, sending families enjoying the sun into a panic. Among the victims of the shooting were Eric and Micayla Coughlin. They suffered severe gunshot wounds while shielding their two young children, who are just two and seven months old.  

A total of nine people ranging in age from eight to 78 were struck and injured by bullets before the shooter, Michael William Nash, fled the scene and killed himself. The Coughlin parents suffered a combined seven gunshot wounds and are recovering in hospital. Their children were unharmed, per the New York Post.   

According to a GoFundMe set by a friend of the Coughlins, the family had just arrived when the shooting took place. "Shortly after grabbing ice cream they walked to the splash pad and were not even there for a minute when [they] heard gunfire." The fundraiser has brought in over $60,000, went on to explain that Eric and Micayla "each grabbed a child to protect them."  

According to the Detroit News, the incident took place shortly after 5 pm at the Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad. While families played and relaxed in the park, Nash allegedly pulled up in a vehicle, got out, and proceeded started blasting. He reloaded his semi-automatic Glock handgun twice, leaving three magazines at the scene.  

The gun was registered in Nash's name, and police were able to use it to track him down to a home nearby. After the suspect died, authorities searched his property and found numerous other weapons, including a semi-automatic rifle on the kitchen table.  

"If he had planned to do anything else, that wouldn't surprise me because having that on the kitchen table is not an everyday activist," Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. "There was probably something else, a second chapter, potentially."  

No motive has been uncovered for the attack, with Bouchard suggesting it was completely "random."    

"Yesterday's horrific shooting of nine people, including two young boys ... is just another appalling example of senseless violence," Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter said. "We're all too good at this and I'm disgusted by it."