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Employee Jean Prost said she was working in the produce section at the back of the store when she heard five loud pops that she initially thought were the sound of a co-worker popping balloons.

\"I thought, 'Gosh, she's busting a lot of balloons.' And I looked up and I see people running, and I thought, 'Oh -- something is happening, or they wouldn't be running,'\" said Prost.

Prost darted out a side door and hustled around the back of the building with a customer, finding a \"little brick corner\" in which to hide. The gunshots were so loud that she was sure the shooter was firing his weapon outside, she said.

\"I'm thinking, 'There's nowhere to hide.' You're just out in the open and you're at his mercy and he could just shoot you,\" said Prost. \"I was so scared I couldn't even run.\"

\"PHOTO:
Joe Rondone / The Commercial Appeal via USA Today Network
PHOTO: Scenes from outside the Kroger on New Byhalia Road where a shooting took place in Collierville, Tenn., Sept. 23, 2021.
>

Sara Wiles, an intensive care unit nurse, was shopping at the grocery store when shots fired.

\"Just walked in on a Thursday to buy a potato, an onion to make soup for dinner and was in the back and I heard the initial pop of the gun, but at that time I thought it was one of the Mylar balloons,\" she said on \"Good Morning America\" Friday. When she heard more shots she started running to the meat department.

A Kroger employee directed her and two others to the back hallway by the stockrooms. \"We made ourselves a hiding space and we hid in that area until we could hear things start to settle down,\" Wiles recalled.

Eventually police officers walked by and led them to the back section of the store where other shooting victims were waiting. That's when her nurse instincts kicked in.

\"I just turned and looked at the paramedics and said I'm a nurse, what do I do? What do you need me to do? And just went around and checked on people, asked them how they were doing and made sure that people were conscious,\" Wiles said.

\"Everybody says when they've seen this scenario that it never happens in my community. I can tell you that's true living here for 33 years,\" she said praising first responders for their speedy response. \"It could have been a whole lot worse had it been a weekend.\"

\"PHOTO:
Mark Humphrey/AP
PHOTO: Officer Ben Hubbard, of the Collierville Police Department, and other residents pray during a vigil at Town Hall, Collierville, Tenn., Sept. 24, 2021.
>

The suspected shooter's car remains in the store parking lot, police said. Resources were brought in to safely inspect the vehicle. Police plan to carry out search warrants at several locations, but Lane couldn't divulge any information on where.

There are no additional threats at this time, he said.

\"This situation is going to drive fear, but we are a resilient community,\" Lane said.

Collierville is about 30 miles from Memphis.

\"PHOTO:
Patrick Lantrip/AP
PHOTO: A Kroger employee talks on a cellphone following a shooting at a Kroger's grocery store in Collierville, Tenn., Sept. 23, 2021.
>

Memphis police said its officers are helping secure the scene. The FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are also on the scene.

A Kroger spokesperson said in a statement, \"The entire Kroger family offers our thoughts, prayers and support to the individuals and families of the victims during this difficult time.\"

\"We are cooperating with local law enforcement, who have secured the store and parking lot. The store will remain closed while the police investigation continues, and we have initiated counseling services for our associates,\" the statement continued.

ABC News' Jack Date, Luke Barr, Aaron Katersky, Will McDuffie, Nick Cirone, Ivan Pereira, Miles Cohen and Kendall Coughlin contributed to this report.

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