A fast-thinking professor's actions may have prevented yesterday's shooting at UCLA from spilling into an even bigger tragedy.

According to an eyewitness account professor Chris Lynch held the door to professor Klug’s office door shut after hearing two gunshots come from the office.

UCLA professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Ajit Mal witnessed the events and believes Lynch’s actions may have spooked the assailant, Mainak Sarkar, into taking his own life.

Mal was in his office getting ready for class at around 10 a.m. when he said he heard a noise.

"I heard two — what sounded like shots. I came out of my office and my next door neighbor [...] also came out and we started investigating what's going on," Mal said. "And we immediately decided that these were gunshots."

You can hear his full story below:

When we when we came out, I think a couple of doors open, faculty offices. Immediately my colleague — his name is Chris Lynch. We told everybody to stay inside and lock the door. I also [went] inside and locked the door. Chris started walking around, so I opened the door again and saw that he was checking all the doors. The office where the gunshots took place, he went there. What he told me is that he grabbed the handle of the door to make sure it doesn't open. So that's when all of us heard the third shot. I suspect [...] that this gentleman [...] shot the first two shots on Bill Klug. He apparently had probably a mission to get to another faculty member. But because of Chris's being there, he figured he has been discovered or that there are people outside. So he killed himself. He was not trying to enter the room. He just held the door so that it could not be open. He did a very smart thing.

Mal believes that Lynch’s actions may have prevented Sarkar from killing another faculty member who was named on his kill list.

“That was very courageous of him,” he added.

Mal said he helped recruit and acted as a mentor to professor Klug, who was killed yesterday.

"He was a terrific teacher and students loved his way of running the classes," Mal said. "He got a departmental award for being one of the best teachers. In general he was an excellent teacher."

Mal said he used to attend the same gym as the suspect in yesterday's shooting, but didn't know him personally.