Just before 10pm on Saturday 30 October, the three gunmen, wearing blue boiler suits and balaclavas, entered the "Rising Sun Bar" in Greysteel. There were at least 70 people inside attending a Halloween party and at first some believed the men were playing a Halloween prank. Stephen Irwin yelled "trick or treat" as he opened fire with a VZ58 assault rifle on the packed crowd in the lounge. He kept shooting until the magazine emptied, quickly reloaded and continued shooting. Geoffrey Deeney opened fire with a 9mm handgun at a fleeing woman, but it jammed after one shot. Torrens Knight, armed with a shotgun, guarded the entrance while the shooting was taking place. There was panic and screaming as people scrambled for cover and women pleaded for mercy. The scene in the Rising Sun was described as "hell-like"; bodies lay everywhere and the lounge and dancefloor were covered with blood and broken glass. The gunmen, laughing, then made their escape in the Opel Kadett driven by Knight. While driving away from Greysteel, the getaway car's wing mirror was hit by a police car speeding towards the scene.