Draft:Taff Groves
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Early life and military career
Taff Groves a former Special Air Service personnel and a key rescuer in the 2013 September Westgate Mall Attack, was born in Cardiff, Wales and grew up in the Ely and Cathays areas.
At 19, he joined the Royal Regiment of Wales. In 1985, Groves passed the United Kingdom (UK) Special Forces selection on his first attempt and was attached to the Special Air Service (SAS) serving in 'B' Squadron 22 SAS and in L Detachment Reserves. His military career spanned over 30 years, primarily within UK Special Forces.
On 21 September 2013, Groves was visiting Nairobi, Kenya in his civilian capacity as an international security advisor, working with SLB, during which time, the Westgate Shopping Mall terrorist attack occurred.
The assault, carried out by Al-Shabaab militants, resulted in 67 deaths and over 200 injuries.[1] Groves and a colleague, Lorcan Byrne an ex Irish Ranger Tier 1 responded to the incident unarmed.
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Arriving at the scene, Groves and Byrne coordinated the evacuation of civilians,[2] guiding dozens to safety from hiding places, including the mall's loading area, the Java Café and the worst hit area of the rooftop car park. The militants has launched their attack during a children's cooking competition held in that area.
It was a distressing, emergency, life threatening scene, many shots had been fired and grenades thrown, causing at least one gas canister used in the competition to explode, spreading shrapnel. Amidst the chaos, an unexpected grenade lay near the cooking area.
At this point, witnesses confirm that Groves and Byrne (now armed) split up and local radio host Sadia Ahmed recalls a white man (identified as Taff Groves) in a checked shirt who appeared and attempted to persuade the walking wounded to leave the deceased and follow him.
Groves systematically covered the deceased with red tablecloths from the cooking competition. Witnesses reported that he repeatedly paired the injured with the uninjured and escorted them over the low wall into the Java café and to the emergency stairwell.
These included Elaine Dang [3] [4] and some were so severely injured that they needed to be carried by Groves. All the while close range shots and explosions could be heard and still the unexploded grenade lay nearby.
Groves’ identity and involvement truly remained undisclosed until the 10th anniversary of the attack in 2023, when survivors urged him to share his account. His and Byrne's actions were widely praised for their bravery and humanitarian impact during one of Kenya's deadliest terror attacks.[5][6]
References
- ^ "Westgate mall attack: What happened 10 years ago?". BBC News. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
- ^ Howden, Daniel (2013-11-02). "Nairobi mall attack: how an ex-SAS man and a former Irish soldier helped to save lives". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
- ^ ABC 10 News (2013-11-06). Kenyan mall attack survivor Elaine Dang gives first local TV interview to 10News. Retrieved 2024-12-17 – via YouTube.
{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Ford, Dana (2013-10-10). "Kenya mall attack survivor played dead to live". CNN. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
- ^ Wightwick, Abbie (2023-09-24). "The Welsh SAS hero who helped save hundreds of lives in Kenya mall attack". Wales Online. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
- ^ Phillips, Martin (2023-09-19). "TRUE HEROES who helped save lives in Kenya mall terror attack finally revealed as former SAS man and Irish Ranger". The Sun.
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