One of the witnesses to the deadly Waffle House shooting in Antioch returned to the restaurant for its reopening.
The decision to allow employees to come back and serve customers has become a crucial step moving forward for Chuck Cordero.
"It's nice to see them getting back to how it was before this all happened," Cordero told NewsChannel 5. "It's not that we're trying to forget, I know I'll never forget, but it's nice to see people come back in here."
Cordero was outside the restaurant when 29-year-old Travis Reinking allegedly opened fire and killed four people, including his friend and Waffle House employee, Taurean Sanderlin.
NewsChannel 5 first interviewed Cordero the morning of the shooting.
“As soon as he started shooting inside, I dropped to the ground and started to crawl around my car because I didn't know if he was going to come after me," Cordero said on Sunday.
After the vicious attack, he drove by the restaurant to see when it would reopen. On Wednesday, he stopped by around 5 a.m. and was allowed inside before the restaurant officially opened.
"I saw them inside, and they invited me in for coffee and we talked a little bit. They're appreciative of me speaking for them, and I'm appreciative of them," he said.
Four crosses representing the four victims killed lined the street where the restaurant is located.
Cordero said he is doing "fine" but wanted to focus the attention on the family and friends dealing with heavier pain.
"I don't even want to go into it because it's a fraction compared to what these other families are going through," Cordero added. "I lost a good friend, but he had a family and I'm not going to make it about how I feel, I'm doing okay, because I know some people are struggling more."
