By . Louise Boyle . PUBLISHED: . 10:34 EST, 17 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 12:45 EST, 17 December 2012 . Teachers who survived the Sandy Hook massacre spoke today of the horrifying moment it dawned on them that a shooter was on the loose in the school. Connie Sullivan, who teaches the third grade, said her children were happily engrossed in a project when she heard gunshots at 9.30am on Friday. She quickly told her students to hide and begged them to stay quiet. She said: 'I heard a popping sound. Some noises were coming over the loudspeaker, that sounded like weeping.' Scroll down for video . Terror: Third-grade teacher Connie Sullivan spoke of her ordeal as she hid students during the Sandy Hook school shooting where 20 students died . The teacher herded her students together and told them they must keep quiet.  Ms Sullivan said: 'I just kept . reassuring them that they would be okay. That they were loved. That . their mommies and daddies would be there soon. And that we had them, . that we would hold them tight.' Murderer: Adam Lanza shot dead 20 students and six staff at Sandy Hook elementary before turning the gun on himself . She said her students were deeply distraught and crying but were quiet and held each other. Her colleague Kris Feda also spoke to the Today show about the moment she realized a gunman had burst into the elementary school. Ms Feda said that senior members of staff immediately ran into the hallway to face the gunfire. She said that she had lost sense of time but that the shooting appeared to go on for around ten minutes. Kindergarten teacher Janet Vollmer said she tried to distract her students, to take their attention away from the terrifying ordeal. She told the little children that the noises might be someone up on the roof getting a soccer ball. After the gunfire finally stopped, . Ms Vollmer said police arrived and told her to lead students out, . holding hands and for them to cover their eyes. She added: 'I did pass . some blood on the floor.' The . parents at the firehouse 'had relief pouring over them' when they were . finally reunited with their children, according to Ms Feda. She . added: 'Kids that weren't picked up yet by parents went in one room and . the parents who were without kids went into another room. That was a . very difficult scene.' The teachers said that they would come through this tragedy because they were a strong community who would pull together. Newtown . police chief told a news conference today that the teachers and staff . at Sandy Hook elementary school did 'everything they could'. Distraught: Kris Feda (left) said she knew when she heard 'popping' on Friday morning that it was gunshots while kindergarten teacher Janet Vollmer (right) said she tried to divert children's attention from what was happening . Holding each other tight: Staff at Sandy Hook Elementary school said they would come through the tragedy because they are a strong community . School nurse Sally Cox revealed to ABC that she was just 20 feet from the shooter while she hid under her office desk. She said: 'I could see him from the knees down. 20 feet away. His boots facing my desk. It was seconds. He turned and walked out.' Once the shooter had left, a secretary who had been hiding nearby, rushed into the nurse's office and two dialed 911. They then hid in the supply closet for the next four hours until police found them. She added: ' You couldn't hear a whole lot. We heard screaming and the gunshots.' Police told the women to cover their eyes are they were led from the building. Petrifying: School nurse Sally Cox managed to place a 911 call after the shooter came within 20 feet of her hiding place . Four teachers were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School trying to save their students from gunman Adam Lanza. They have been . identified as principal Dawn Hochsprung, 47, school psychologist Mary . Sherlach, 56, Lauren Rousseau, 30, and 27-year-old Vicki Soto. Devastated friends of Miss Rousseau . said she was having 'the best year of her life' after landing her first . full-time teaching job only months ago. Twenty-eight people died in the . shooting rampage, including 20 young children. Grief: A woman kneels and weeps among the flowers left as tributes at the scene of Connecticut shooting . Angels: A young boy walks through a hillside memorial site in Newtown where 26 students and teachers were killed at Sandy Hook school . When Lanza started firing at the . school in suburban Newtown, Connecticut, Mrs Hochsprung and Mrs Sherlach . didn't hesitate to confront the crazed shooter. They ran into the hallway to confront the danger and were murdered execution-style as a result. First-grade teacher Miss Soto tried to protect her students by hiding them in a closet and telling the gunman that her students were on the other side of the school. She was shot and killed. Comfort: A woman speaks to a young girl at an interfaith vigil for families of the victims as well as families from Sandy Hook Elementary School . Embrace: The teachers of Sandy Hook school said that the community would slowly recover from the horrific ordeal because of their strength . VIDEO: Police will question Sandy Hook survivors as investigation continues .
Third-grade teacher Connie Sullivan said her class could hear weeping over the loudspeaker at the elementary school in Connecticut .
Four teachers murdered by gunman as they tried to save students .
By . Louise Boyle . PUBLISHED: . 10:34 EST, 17 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 12:45 EST, 17 December 2012 . Teachers who survived the Sandy Hook massacre spoke today of the horrifying moment it dawned on them that a shooter was on the loose in the school. Connie Sullivan, who teaches the third grade, said her children were happily engrossed in a project when she heard gunshots at 9.30am on Friday. She quickly told her students to hide and begged them to stay quiet. She said: 'I heard a popping sound. Some noises were coming over the loudspeaker, that sounded like weeping.' Scroll down for video . Terror: Third-grade teacher Connie Sullivan spoke of her ordeal as she hid students during the Sandy Hook school shooting where 20 students died . The teacher herded her students together and told them they must keep quiet.  Ms Sullivan said: 'I just kept . reassuring them that they would be okay. That they were loved. That . their mommies and daddies would be there soon. And that we had them, . that we would hold them tight.' Murderer: Adam Lanza shot dead 20 students and six staff at Sandy Hook elementary before turning the gun on himself . She said her students were deeply distraught and crying but were quiet and held each other. Her colleague Kris Feda also spoke to the Today show about the moment she realized a gunman had burst into the elementary school. Ms Feda said that senior members of staff immediately ran into the hallway to face the gunfire. She said that she had lost sense of time but that the shooting appeared to go on for around ten minutes. Kindergarten teacher Janet Vollmer said she tried to distract her students, to take their attention away from the terrifying ordeal. She told the little children that the noises might be someone up on the roof getting a soccer ball. After the gunfire finally stopped, . Ms Vollmer said police arrived and told her to lead students out, . holding hands and for them to cover their eyes. She added: 'I did pass . some blood on the floor.' The . parents at the firehouse 'had relief pouring over them' when they were . finally reunited with their children, according to Ms Feda. She . added: 'Kids that weren't picked up yet by parents went in one room and . the parents who were without kids went into another room. That was a . very difficult scene.' The teachers said that they would come through this tragedy because they were a strong community who would pull together. Newtown . police chief told a news conference today that the teachers and staff . at Sandy Hook elementary school did 'everything they could'. Distraught: Kris Feda (left) said she knew when she heard 'popping' on Friday morning that it was gunshots while kindergarten teacher Janet Vollmer (right) said she tried to divert children's attention from what was happening . Holding each other tight: Staff at Sandy Hook Elementary school said they would come through the tragedy because they are a strong community . School nurse Sally Cox revealed to ABC that she was just 20 feet from the shooter while she hid under her office desk. She said: 'I could see him from the knees down. 20 feet away. His boots facing my desk. It was seconds. He turned and walked out.' Once the shooter had left, a secretary who had been hiding nearby, rushed into the nurse's office and two dialed 911. They then hid in the supply closet for the next four hours until police found them. She added: ' You couldn't hear a whole lot. We heard screaming and the gunshots.' Police told the women to cover their eyes are they were led from the building. Petrifying: School nurse Sally Cox managed to place a 911 call after the shooter came within 20 feet of her hiding place . Four teachers were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School trying to save their students from gunman Adam Lanza. They have been . identified as principal Dawn Hochsprung, 47, school psychologist Mary . Sherlach, 56, Lauren Rousseau, 30, and 27-year-old Vicki Soto. Devastated friends of Miss Rousseau . said she was having 'the best year of her life' after landing her first . full-time teaching job only months ago. Twenty-eight people died in the . shooting rampage, including 20 young children. Grief: A woman kneels and weeps among the flowers left as tributes at the scene of Connecticut shooting . Angels: A young boy walks through a hillside memorial site in Newtown where 26 students and teachers were killed at Sandy Hook school . When Lanza started firing at the . school in suburban Newtown, Connecticut, Mrs Hochsprung and Mrs Sherlach . didn't hesitate to confront the crazed shooter. They ran into the hallway to confront the danger and were murdered execution-style as a result. First-grade teacher Miss Soto tried to protect her students by hiding them in a closet and telling the gunman that her students were on the other side of the school. She was shot and killed. Comfort: A woman speaks to a young girl at an interfaith vigil for families of the victims as well as families from Sandy Hook Elementary School . Embrace: The teachers of Sandy Hook school said that the community would slowly recover from the horrific ordeal because of their strength . VIDEO: Police will question Sandy Hook survivors as investigation continues .
noises were coming over the loudspeaker, that Terror: Third-grade teacher Connie Sullivan spoke Vollmer said she tried to distract her students, teachers were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary school in suburban Newtown, Connecticut, Mrs