Edmonton seniors recall peaceful evening shattered by gunfire across the road

EDMONTON – As a member of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, Paul Noble never feared death and made a habit of defying it.

The 91-year-old flew 54 missions in Lancaster bombers and returned safe and sound each time. He was issued a sidearm, but never carried it with him, thinking it wouldn’t be much help if he were shot down behind enemy lines.

Noble never thought he would have to cheat harm again when he took a snooze on his couch after supper on a warm, sunny evening at home.

He and his wife Ollie, 83, live in a house across the street from Norman Raddatz, who is suspected of killing Edmonton police Const. Daniel Woodall during an arrest attempt Monday night.

When gunfire erupted, more than 50 bullets struck the Nobles’ home, much to the surprise of the two seniors inside.

Noble said he had just finished dinner and was lying down for a rest when he heard what sounded like an aluminum ladder crashing to the ground in his garage. The sound lasted for about 10 seconds. He went to his wife who was in the other room.

There was smoke in the hallway and the fire alarm went off, adding to the confusion.

“I had not idea what was happening,” he recalled.

They could see police officers at the house across the road, some with their weapons drawn.

“I said, ‘That’s gunfire’ and I didn’t know it until then,” Noble said. “There were some awful loud bangs.”

Soon officers pounded on the couple’s back door and told them to take cover in the basement.

They stayed there for about an hour until it was safe to come up and survey the damage.

Bullets had turned their garage door to Swiss cheese. Shots blasted through their house, ripped through pictures and lodged in walls. One had shattered the glass on a piece of hockey memorabilia. Noble’s father had won a Stanley Cup with the old Montreal Maroons.

It was then that Noble realized how close he came to injury.

There were three bullet holes above the couch were he had been resting.

“Had I stood up when the ammunition was coming through, I would have got hit right in the face with shrapnel or bullets,” he said. “I though I was very lucky.”

It’s believed Raddatz was killed when his house burned down after the shooting. Police Chief Rod Knecht has said none of the officers managed to return fire. Woodall was shot while trying to use a battering ram to break down the door.

The couple isn’t rattled, despite the close brush with harm.

“When you get to this age …” Ollie Noble said. “I wasn’t worried at all.”