Daughter of ex-UNLV QB aids Las Vegas Strip shooting victims
Her father was UNLV’s quarterback after Randall Cunningham, so perhaps it wasn’t a big surprise how Savannah Stallworth reacted after deadly shots rang out at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival that left 58 dead and more than 500 injured.
Stallworth, 23, is a marketing and branding manager for UNLV’s new multimedia rights holder Learfield and moonlights as a promotions assistant for Beasley Media Group. She was working the hospitality area for local radio station 102.7 The Coyote, which accounts for her presence at the festival Sunday night. Well, that and her love of country music.
Stallworth said she initially thought gunshots coming from a 32nd floor window at Mandalay Bay was equipment on the stage malfunctioning.
“When we saw Jason Aldean run off the stage is when we all knew what was going on — not the full capacity, but we knew it was time to get out of there.”
Speeding to Sunrise
She and her friends ran through the VIP area to the dirt lot adjacent to the concert compound near Reno Avenue where she had parked her red Toyota Tacoma. An off-duty police officer asked if she could transport victims to the hospital in the bed of her truck.
Her friend Thomas Heimric, who is employed by the Vegas Golden Knights, and sorority sister Natalie Costa helped concert staff load shooting victims into Stallworth’s truck. She drove as fast as she could to Sunrise Hospital, thanks to an assist from another driver.
“There was a white jeep, a family maybe, (and) they sped through every intersection and stopped oncoming traffic for us,” she said. “They led us all the way to Sunrise.”
Stallworth said she didn’t know the names of the two victims or their companion, or the extent of their injuries. She assumed both had gunshot wounds.
“My friend Thomas rode in the back of the truck with them and I know that he had blood on his pants after the fact. But I didn’t ask (if the victims were distressed), and I don’t think it’s something we’re ever going to talk about. But it would be nice to see them to know they are OK.”
‘Thousands of heroes’
Stallworth said she has experienced a gamut of emotions since Sunday night, but by Wednesday morning she was mostly feeling numb.
“People call this world evil and humans evil,” she said. “But that night there was only one evil person. And thousands of heroes.”
The only daughter of Steve and Stephanie Stallworth — her dad was UNLV’s starting quarterback in 1985 and ‘86 and is the longtime general manager of the South Point Arena and Equestrian Center — on Saturday will be on the field at Sam Boyd Stadium, making sure a special presentation during the Rebels game against San Diego State goes smoothly. The ceremony had been planned for weeks. They were calling it “An Appreciation of Heroes.”
Contact Ron Kantowski at rkantowski@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0352. Follow @ronkantowski on Twitter.