LAHORE , Pakistan ( CNN ) -- His job was to drive the bus . But Meher Mohammad Khalil is now being hailed as a lifesaver . On Wednesday Meher Mohammad Khalil went back to the place where gunmen attacked his bus . When gunmen jumped out of bushes and began spraying bullets at the bus carrying the Sri Lankan cricket team Tuesday , Khalil quickly sized up his options and got everyone to safety . `` First I thought there were some firecrackers going off . Then , when I saw the elite force cars in front of me taking fire , I immediately lost my voice , '' Khalil told CNN on Wednesday . `` At that time , the other elite car that was with us gave me cover , and then , when I saw he was giving me cover , my courage and my patience returned . Watch CNN 's interview with Khalil » . `` I decided to take the vehicle from there , and one way or another , even if I had to drive over someone , I would take this bus and escape . '' Watch the gunmen attack » . Khalil returned to the scene of the attack in the Pakistani city of Lahore on Wednesday to honor those who were killed and to place flowers in their memory . One of the dead was Zafar Khan , a friend and fellow bus driver who had been in a vehicle behind Khalil . `` My eyes filled with tears that these were people that I was eating with and who died in doing their duty . '' Khalil had been part of a convoy heading to Gaddafi Stadium , where the Sri Lankan cricket team was to continue a match against Pakistan . Six police officers were killed , in addition to Khalil 's friend Khan who was driving a bus with the match umpires . See where the attack happened » . The Sri Lankan cricketers praised Khalil 's quick thinking and action , saying he saved their lives . Six team members were injured by broken glass and shrapnel . Team captain Mahela Jayawardene wrote on his Web site of Khalil : `` He probably saved our lives , showing remarkable bravery in the face of direct gunfire to keep the bus moving . '' Crowds mobbed Khalil as he paid his respects at the place where his life changed in an instant . `` He is a hero , a real hero , a real man of the people , '' a man in the crowd said . Private donors in Lahore have rewarded Khalil with 300,000 rupees ( more than $ 3,000 ) -- a small fortune for a Pakistani bus driver . Today , Khalil says all he can feel is pain of the loss of life . And he called on the attackers to recognize that their victims are humans just like them , with mothers and sisters . `` For God 's sake , please stop this terrorism and let this nation breathe a sigh of relief , '' he said . CNN 's Zein Basravi contributed to this report .
Meher Mohammad Khalil 's bus came under intense gunfire in Lahore , Pakistan . Score: 6 Khalil returned to scene of attack , where crowds hailed him as a hero .