‘Absolutely Terrifying’: MSF Hospital Nurse Recounts Deadly Kunduz Attack

The Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) hospital in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz ceased operations following a deadly bombing, the communications manager for the organization said Sunday.

On Saturday, the hospital accommodating some 200 people was bombed leaving at least 19 dead, including three children, 37 injured and dozens missing.

The burned Doctors Without Borders hospital is seen after explosions in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015

© AP Photo / Médecins Sans Frontières

The hospital was hit by a series of aerial bombing raids from 02:08 a.m. until 03:15 a.m. local time on Saturday (after 22:00 GMT Friday).

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) nurse Lajos Zoltan Jecs is a survivor of the Kunduz trauma hospital attack. He was inside the facility when it was struck by a series of aerial bombing raids.

He describes his experience: “It was absolutely terrifying. I was sleeping in our safe room in the hospital. At around 2am, I was woken up by the sound of a big explosion nearby. At first I didn't know what was going on. Over the past week we'd heard bombings and explosions before, but always further away. This one was different, close and loud.”

Afghan (MSF) surgeons work inside a Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) hospital after an air strike in the city of Kunduz, Afghanistan

© REUTERS / MSF

He described that at first there was confusion and dust settling. Then there was more bombing. “After 20 or 30 minutes, I heard someone calling my name. It was one of the Emergency Room nurses. He staggered in with massive trauma to his arm. He was covered in blood, with wounds all over his body.”

After maybe half an hour the bombing stopped. Jecs described going with the project coordinator to see what had happened. “What we saw was the hospital destroyed, burning. I don’t know what I felt, just shock again.”

Injured Doctors Without Borders staff are seen after explosions near their hospital in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015

© AP Photo / Médecins Sans Frontières

“We tried to take a look into one of the burning buildings. I cannot describe what was inside. There are no words for how terrible it was. In the Intensive Care Unit six patients were burning in their beds.”

He then said that they found some survivors in the inpatient department. Then in a safe bunker next door, also everyone inside was OK. He talked about the whole situation describing it very difficult. “We saw our colleagues dying. Our pharmacist…I was just talking to him last night and planning the stocks, and then he died there in our office.”

The Doctors Without Borders trauma center is seen in flames after explosions near their hospital, in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz

© AP Photo / Médecins Sans Frontières

He said that he has been working in this hospital since May, and he has seen a lot of heavy medical situations. “But it is a totally different story when they are your colleagues, your friends. These are people who had been working hard for months, non-stop for the past week. They had not gone home, they had not seen their families, they had just been working in the hospital to help people… and now they are dead.”

“These people are friends, close friends. I have no words to express this. It is unspeakable.”