Heads were bowed, eyes were closed and some were gripping their tissues while wiping away their tears as King George Square fell silent for one minute to remember the Christchurch terror attack victims.
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About 700 people gathered in Brisbane's CBD for a vigil on Friday night, just one week after 50 Muslim worshippers were shot dead in what was believed to be an ideologically inspired terror attack.
One of the victims was the father of a Brisbane City Council staff member.
Lord mayor Graham Quirk said his thoughts were with the staff member who had flown to New Zealand to grieve with her family.
"Her father was praying in a mosque in Christchurch and obviously it was very quick," he said.
"Christchurch feels like a long way away but this made it very real, very local and very at home in terms of the impact.
"This is just a demonstration of how broad the population of Brisbane is, even within our own staff."
Brisbane woman Alham Shebeb said she felt it was her duty to stand with her Muslim and Australian communities and pay respect to those who were killed.
"I had to be there for the New Zealanders, they're our neighbours and they're our family," she said.
"I've been hugging strangers all night who have come up to me and they've told me that we're all here together and we're all human so it's all really sweet."
Fighting back tears, Ms Shebeb said the shock of the terror attack last week had hit home.
"I was terrified at first because a bunch of us have actually come from New Zealand so that first night, we all came together and were with each other," she said.
"I got a blast of messages on my phone when it happened and it was a shock ... the emotions have been hitting me all the week."
Ms Shebeb said she had felt the support from the community, especially during the prayer service at the Islamic College of Brisbane on Sunday.
However, she said the impact of the attack had affected Muslims in Brisbane who were worried about any backlash.
"Friends that usually go to the mosque and my brother who goes, a lot of people have been scared to go to pray because of fear," she said.
"This is the place that we've been brought up to feel safe in and it has been upsetting in some ways to see some people bringing up past terror attacks when we want to focus on supporting the community right now.
"Even though this happening, there still is a strong sense of community among Muslims and non-Muslims, which was beautiful to see today."
People lined up to sign the condolence book for the Christchurch victims, and this will be left at the reception of Brisbane City Hall.
Muslims also entered a room in the hall that was set up for them to do their Friday afternoon prayers.
The vigil was just one of many services that has been held in Queensland, with many more to occur on the weekend as people continue to grieve.
