This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia, which closed in 2021.

These Are The Victims Of The Terrorist Attacks In Spain

These Are The Victims Of The Terrorist Attacks In Spain
Victims families
Injured people are tended to near the scene of a terrorist attack in the Las Ramblas area Thursday in Barcelona.
Nicolas Carvalho Ochoa via Getty Images
Injured people are tended to near the scene of a terrorist attack in the Las Ramblas area Thursday in Barcelona.

People the world over made appeals for their loved ones after terrorists plowed into pedestrians in the Spanish cities of Barcelona and Cambrils on Thursday.

Authorities confirmed that 14 people died (13 in Barcelona and one in Cambrils) and more than 100 were injured. They hailed from 34 countries.

Carles Puigdemont, the regional president of Catalonia, announced three days of mourning. A minute of silence was held at noon Friday at the Plaça Catalunya in Barcelona, near where a terrorist drove a van into a crowd of people.

The Catalonia government said in a statement that it was supporting the victims’ families with the help of psychologists, social workers and police officials.

Here’s what we know so far about victims who have been identified.

Jared Tucker, 43, United States

Tucker and his wife, Heidi Nunes-Tucker, were on a trip around the world to celebrate their first anniversary. On their stop in Barcelona, they were shopping at a kiosk on the sidewalk in Las Ramblas when Tucker left to go to the restroom, according to ABC News. Soon after, a van rammed into the crowd on the sidewalk.

Next thing I know there’s screaming, yelling,” Nunes-Tucker told NBC News. “I got pushed inside the souvenir kiosk and stayed there hiding while everybody kept running by screaming.”

After the crash, Nunes-Tucker said she was disoriented while she tried to find her husband. She later learned he died when she was contacted to identify the body.

Tucker, a resident of Lafayette, California, ran his family business resurfacing swimming pools, according to The Washington Post. He met Nunes, a teacher, in 2012, and the couple married last summer. Tucker’s family said it was his first time in Europe.

“We love Jared, we love you, and we are grateful that in this time of turmoil in this world we can still band together in a time of need and support each other,” Tucker’s family said in a statement published by the Post.

“Pray for Jared and his family, pray for Barcelona, but most importantly pray that we can someday rid ourselves of the hate that takes our loved ones before their time.”

Luca Russo, 25, Italy

Russo was one of two Italians confirmed dead by the prime minister of Italy. He and his girlfriend, Marta Scomazzon, were on vacation, walking in Las Ramblas, when the attack began, according to an Italian news agency.

Scomazzon reportedly told a relative, “We were walking together, then the van came on top of us.” She survived with injuries.

Russo was an engineer who had recently graduated from college and had been working professionally for a year. His boss, Stefano Facchinello, told Italian news agency ANSA that Russo was a “willing, precise and punctual young man. He made an impression on us for his rationality and determination.”

One of the last posts on Russo’s Facebook page, which has been turned into a memorial, contained a graphic with a quote in Italian reflecting on death: “We are born without bringing anything, we die without taking away anything. And in the middle, we argue for something.”

Bruno Gulotta, 35, Italy

The vacationing Italian husband and father of two was walking on Las Ramblas with his wife, Martina Sacchi, and their young children when the van raced toward them Thursday.

According to Italian media, Gulotta’s wife kneeled down to shield their son, 6, and daughter, 7 months. Gulotta knelt to shield his son too, but was hit.

Gulotta was a marketing and sales manager at Tom’s Hardware, which confirmed his death on Facebook. Gulotta’s colleagues said his son was about to start primary school, “knowing that his life and the life of his family will never be the same,” adding that his daughter, Aria, will never know her father.

“Rest in peace Bruno,” Gulotta’s colleague’s wrote on the company’s website. “We will remember you forever.”

 

Ian Moore Wilson, Canada

Fiona Wilson, a staff sergeant with the Vancouver Police, confirmed Friday that her father died in Barcelona. In a statement published by police, Fiona Wilson described him as a “much-loved husband, father, brother and grandfather.”

Ian Moore Wilson, she said, had been married for 53 years and was “compassionate, generous, adventurous, and always game for a lively debate, a good book, exploring new places, and a proper-sized pint.”

His daughter added, “In the midst of this tragedy, my dad would want those around him to focus on the extraordinary acts of human kindness that our family has experienced over the past several days, and that is exactly what we intend to do.”

Ian Moore Wilson with his wife.
Vancouver Police
Ian Moore Wilson with his wife.

Francisco López Rodríguez, 57, Spain

The Granada native, who was living in Barcelona, was with his family in Las Ramblas on Thursday, with his wife, his niece and her son. They were strolling through the port when the van ran onto the sidewalk, according to local media.

Relatives said Francisco was the youngest of three brothers in Catalan, according to El País, and they wanted others to know that he was a good person.

Elke Vanbockrijck, 44, Belgium

The Belgian post office clerk was on a family vacation with her two sons, ages 11 and 14, and her husband, a Belgian Army soldier.

Vanbockrijck’s husband reportedly tried to push their sons away from harm when the van crashed into the sidewalk, according to a Belgian Dutch-language newspaper, Het Belang Van Limburg. One son was injured, and his wife died at the scene.

Julian Cadman, 7, Britain & Australia

Julian Cadman and his mother, Jumarie, had traveled from Sydney, Australia, to Barcelona for a wedding. The two were walking on Las Ramblas when the van struck. Julian, a dual British-Australian national, was separated from his mother during the chaos and listed as a missing person following the attack.

Family members put out urgent calls to find Julian in the days following the incident, but authorities on Sunday confirmed that he had been killed. Jumarie was also injured in the attack, but is expected to survive.

Nick Robins-Early contributed reporting to this article.

Language in this story has been amended to clarify that Het Belang Van Limburg is a Dutch-language newspaper, not a Dutch newspaper.

Close
This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia. Certain site features have been disabled. If you have questions or concerns, please check our FAQ or contact support@huffpost.com.