TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The chaotic scramble in the Student Union.

The automatic lockdown across campus that left students safe but in fear.

The sinking but all too familiar feeling as word spread of an active shooter.

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Students at Florida State University shared their perspectives live with News4JAX on Thursday as we covered the developing story of the active shooter at the Student Union on campus.

Kristina Lipe, an FSU student from Jacksonville, said she and a friend were heading to campus when they got the first alert at 12:01 p.m. warning students of an active shooter.

They opted to stay home, but Lipe said her friend’s roommate was at the Student Union when the shots rang out.

“She told us she heard shots and she just started running immediately and had to jump in a random person’s car,” Lipe said. “It was chaos. She had to jump in two different people’s cars.”

FSU law student Madilyn Otero spoke with News4JAX while she was sheltering in place in a law school classroom, about a mile from the scene.

She said one of her classmates was in the student union and ran back to the law school for safety.

“He made it, but I’m sure that was traumatic,” Otero said. “He definitely looked somewhat frazzled.”

Otero pointed out that the student union at lunchtime would have been filled with students.

“If someone were to desire to hit the most people possible. That would be the place,” she said.

She said the doors across campus automatically locked during the shelter-in-place order, but faculty members kept checking on her and other students and sharing information with them.

“We just wanted to get easy access to as much information as possible, just to make sure that our location itself was safe,” Otero said.

She said that active shooter drills throughout school taught her to stay low, stay in place and lock the doors.

“Running draws attention, so usually that’s not recommended,” Otero said. “Fortunately — or unfortunately — due to the nature of the times, I did feel prepared for something like this.”

Otero, Lipe and FSU meteorology student Bryce all told News4JAX that their first thoughts were to let their families know they were OK and to check on their friends.

“I have friends from Parkland. This is just kind of the new normal,” Bryce said. “This is just going to keep happening and nothing’s going to be done about it. … The access we have to guns right now is what’s causing this.”

By 12:58 p.m., FSU sent an alert letting students know that law enforcement was actively clearing rooms on the campus and to remain sheltered.

“I feel safe in my university on a day to day. This is kind of an unexpected situation. I trust that they have it under control,” Lipe said. “I believe that with time, it will be handled and everything will go back to normal eventually.”

But all three students admitted they will be nervous at first when they return to campus.