{"id":631804,"date":"2026-04-26T10:05:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-26T10:05:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/631804\/"},"modified":"2026-04-26T10:05:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-26T10:05:19","slug":"port-arthur-massacre-australia-to-mark-30-years-since-nations-deadliest-mass-shooting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/631804\/","title":{"rendered":"Port Arthur massacre: Australia to mark 30 years since nation\u2019s deadliest mass shooting"},"content":{"rendered":"

While this coming week marks 30 years since the Port Arthur massacre, for many of those who were there that day in 1996 it feels as though not a day has passed.<\/p>\n

Cathy Goodman, then 28 years old, had just left the Broad Arrow Cafe with her music group when the gunfire began.<\/p>\n

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Port Arthur survivors mark 30 years of trauma<\/p>\n

Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today Arrow<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll never forget it. Every day I wake up … it\u2019s the 28th of April 1996, it\u2019s the first thing I think of,\u201d she told 7NEWS.<\/p>\n

Lone gunman Martin Bryant first opened fire in the cafe at the historical site in Tasmania<\/a> with a semi-automatic rifle, killing 12 people in 15 seconds before further shootings in the nearby gift shop.<\/p>\n

Just prior to the shooting Goodman said she had an eerie feeling and a sense she was going to \u201cbump into somebody that I hadn\u2019t seen my entire life.\u201d<\/p>\n

By the end of Bryant\u2019s rampage he had killed 35 people including two young children, making it Australia\u2019s worst mass shooting.<\/p>\n

Goodman narrowly missed becoming a victim herself, with a single shot missing her.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not me? Why the children?,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI struggled with that for a very long time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"CathyCathy Goodman. Credit: 7NEWS<\/p>\n

Goodman would struggle with the horrific events for many years to come, at one point attempting to take her own life.<\/p>\n

However, a simple but life-changing interaction with a horse ultimately changed her mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was on my way out to take my own life. There was a horse that\u2019s hip bones were nearly poking through its skin and it was just looking very sad in a paddock and I went up to him and I looked him in the eye and there was something in those eyes,\u201d Goodman said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe followed me to my car and this horse hollered, whinnied at me, it went right through the middle of me and I thought \u2018you ratbag\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had about $320 in the bank, I bought him and a bag of (hay) chaff. That horse guards my soul to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MartinMartin Bryant killed 35 people making it Australia\u2019s worst mass shooting. Credit: 7NEWS\"AmbulanceAmbulance crews on the deadly day in 1996. Credit: 7NEWS<\/p>\n

Anita Bingham was working at the Port Arthur tearoom at the time. She was just 17.<\/p>\n

As the shots rang out she sheltered inside with her customers, later honoured with a bravery award for her actions.<\/p>\n

Like Goodman, the memories of that terrifying day remain.<\/p>\n

\u201cI actually had a nightmare the other night and its one of the worst nightmares I think I\u2019ve had in a very long time,\u201d she told 7NEWS.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s him coming after me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AnitaAnita Bingham was just 17 and working at the Port Arthur tearoom at the time of the shooting. Credit: 7NEWS<\/p>\n

Bryant was captured the next morning after an 18-hour stand-off with police.<\/p>\n

Twelve days later, Prime Minister John Howard announced a suite of reforms, including a ban on automatic and semi-automatic long weapons and a buyback that resulted in the destruction of 650,000 guns.<\/p>\n

Music continues to play a central role in Goodman\u2019s life and has helped her through her darkest days.<\/p>\n

On Anzac Day this year she directed the chorus at commemorations in Ballina on the NSW north coast.<\/p>\n

\"GunmanGunman Martin Bryant. Credit: 7NEWS<\/p>\n

Both Goodman and Bingham are united by the sentiment that Australia must continue to learn from the massacre, and never forget those who died.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope in the future we keep working on getting rid of guns because when they\u2019re in wrong people\u2019s hands, look at what it can do,\u201d Bingham said.<\/p>\n

The 30th anniversary on Tuesday will be marked at the site with a quiet commemoration.<\/p>\n

Bryant remains behind bars serving 35 life sentences.<\/p>\n

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