'I'm still shaking': Witnesses of Waukesha Christmas Parade still processing what happened

WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58)-- The Waukesha community is dealing with the emotions behind an attack on the annual Christmas parade. 

Lisa Salb watched on with joy as her granddaughter danced with the Waukesha Xtreme Dance Team in the Christmas Parade on Sunday. Minutes after her granddaughter passed by, a red SUV raced through the parade route, headed straight for the dance team.

Salb said she immediately went running toward her family.

"There were little girls all over the street, and because they were all dressed the same with their uniforms and makeup, I couldn't tell which one was her. So, we went girl to girl, and I was trying to pray for them as we went," Salb said.

Salb's granddaughter wasn't hurt, but many other girls on her dance team were.

"I'm still shaking, still processing it, and I wasn't even hurt," Salb told CBS 58.

Richard Laux watched the same car hit and run over multiple kids marching with his son's high school band.

"My son, I watched him. He was just standing there with his instrument down, trying to see what happened," Laux said. "It was a breathless moment."

A moment was all it took for Laux's instinct to settle in. He ran into the street to try and help those who were hurt.

"There already were three to four people at each kid," Laux said. "So, really proud of Waukesha."

Laux's friend, Chanda Hahn, was dancing in the parade with her daughter when the incident happened.

"We had one dancer that was in the path of the car, and I pulled the girl out of the way," Hahn said. "I started to scream 'Get out of the way,' and I heard shots fired."

Once everyone was safe, Laux and Hahn walked back to his house where her car was parked. Waukesha police instructed them to go inside and not to come out, even after the shelter in place order was lifted.

Hahn said the driver of the SUV drove through her friend's yard into the neighboring driveway, scraping her car in the process. She said her car was part of the evidence.

"This is not the reminder I want of this day. I wanted to go home and recover, and heal from this," Hahn said.

The witnesses who talked to CBS 58 said they're leaning on faith and each other to get through this tragic incident.

"It's not going to be easy, but there will be healing," Laux said.