Poland began two days of national mourning on Sunday, after a 24-year-old man with far-right views walked into a busy central square in Krakow and opened fire, killing six people and wounding 15 others before police shot and wounded him. The attack, which Poland’s Defense Minister described as an “act of terror”, occurred on Saturday in the Main Square, in the heart of Krakow’s old town. It is an important tourist center in the second largest city in the country. On Saturday night, mourners had left candles in memory of the victims. The plaza remained partially closed Sunday morning as authorities continued their investigation. The Mary’s Trumpet Call, a traditional five-note melody played hourly from the highest tower of St. Mary’s Basilica in the Main Square, was paused overnight in tribute to the victims. It was the first time the call had been missed since World War II. Authorities also found the bodies of the gunman’s sister, mother and father in the man’s family home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, a town about 150 kilometers (93 miles) northeast of Krakow. They probably died from gunshot wounds. Witnesses hid in nearby shops to avoid bullets Marie-Ange Collaer wrote on Facebook that she and her family survived the shooting during a trip to Krakow from Brussels. “We literally ran for our lives and managed to hide from the bullets flying around us,” he wrote. “Lying on the floor of a store like in a bad crime movie while hearing bullets everywhere.” UK resident Neil Thaxton and his wife also experienced the attack. “We had just walked through the main square and heard the gunshots,” Thaxton wrote on Facebook. “We thought it was fireworks, so people started running, we went into a gift shop and the staff took us to the back of the shop, closed the doors and turned off the lights.” Alexandros Maronitis, a tourist from Greece, told The Associated Press that he was not able to return to his accommodation until five hours after the tragedy. Get daily national news Get daily Canadian news delivered to your inbox so you never miss the day’s top stories. “We saw the shooter when they picked him up with the ambulance,” Maronitis said. “So we’re a little scared. It’s our first time in Poland. We’ve heard it’s a safe country.” American tourist Marylin Green lamented the losses in the “beautiful city” during her first trip to Poland that also included the capital. “I’m Polish, my parents were from here,” she said. “I loved Warsaw. So I really wanted to come here too.” Witness Andy Hill told the BBC he had felt like he was in a movie scene. “It doesn’t seem real,” said the British tourist. “And the problem is that you have such an instantaneous moment to make a decision: run. Stay still. There’s an element of shock. But I thought the easiest thing to do is dart through a door and just take cover behind the windows.” Police officers described as heroes Prosecutors said Sunday that they had opened an investigation into the murder and attempted murder of numerous people, including police officers, and that the act “constituted a terrorist crime.” Story continues below advertisement Four women and two men died in the shooting in the Main Square. Three of the women and one of the men were Polish, Krzysztof Jan Klęczar, regional governor of Malopolska, said Sunday. Also among the dead were a man from the United Kingdom and a woman from an unnamed foreign country. A video posted on social media showed a police officer repeatedly shooting the attacker, who was lying in the street. Later, the officer slowly collapsed to the ground. The two police officers who detained the gunman, in actions that authorities described as heroic, remain in the hospital. On Sunday afternoon both were conscious. “If it were not for the efficient and selfless intervention of these two young people, the number of victims could have been much higher,” Klęczar said. More about the crime More videos Michał Pędziwiatr and Mateusz Wierdak, two local surgeons who were having something to eat nearby, also intervened. Wierdak “took charge of the officer who subdued the attacker because he really needed urgent help,” Pędziwiatr told the Polish news website onet. “Without protection, without gloves, he simply focused on the officer, stopping the bleeding in his chest. This probably saved his life.” They come from the United Kingdom, Portugal, Russia, Germany and Austria. The suspect is also in critical condition after undergoing multiple surgeries. On Saturday there was confusion about his age, with authorities first saying 24 and then 25. On Sunday they confirmed he is 24. The mass killing marks a grim first for Poland. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said the suspect has “very radical” and “ultranationalist” views. “Everything indicates that he was fascinated by far-right ideologies,” Kierwiński said at a news conference. Local officials in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski said they confiscated seven weapons from the family home, bringing the total number recovered to 11, including four found on the suspect or in his car in Krakow. Both father and son had gun permits, they said. About 411,000 people have gun permits in Poland, which has a population of 37 million, and interest in gun ownership has been increasing. The Swiss shooting club in Starachowice, where the suspect is believed to have trained, issued a statement on Sunday saying it only offered “static shooting,” which involves shooting from a fixed position at a stationary target. The club added that the suspect “never received training at our club in the areas of dynamic, tactical or combat shooting.” Story continues below ad Mass shootings are rare in Poland. However, in mid-October there were three attacks on schools in the central province of Mazovia in four days, leaving one dead and many injured, including children. The young attackers used knives or other sharp objects. Officials blamed the attacks on schools on the “glorification of violence” online and said some of the attackers were active in the far-right environment. The Krakow shooter’s military equipment, weapons and general appearance were similar to other “far-right lone actors” carrying out attacks across Europe, said Kacper Rekawek, a senior researcher at the International Counterterrorism Center in The Hague. “We have had attempts before, but now we can say that these types of attacks have been successful in Poland.” he said.–Ciobanu reported from Warsaw, Poland. Associated Press writer Stefanie Dazio in Berlin contributed to this report.