The Mandalay Bay hotel security guard shot during the Las Vegas massacre has broken his silence after running out on a media conference last week.

Appearing on the Ellen Degeneres Show alongside hotel maintenance worker Stephen Schuck, Mr Campos was hailed a hero after recounting how he was shot in the leg while he checked on a door that was ajar, and called for assistance.

The 25-year-old has been fleeing media interviews and placed signs outside his home which read “no trespassing” and “no media on property”.

Mr Campos told Ellen he was shot in the right thigh before Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire on a nearby country music festival, killing at least 59 people and injuring 500.

Mr Campos appeared emotionally distressed throughout the interview and sometimes avoided eye contact, glancing toward the ground.

He said he came across a door that was blocked from the stairwell between the 31st and 32nd floor of the hotel and called for an engineer – Mr Schuck.

When gunfire erupted from Paddock’s hotel room, Mr Campos said he believed the sounds had come from some kind of drill.

Paddock shot at him through the door and hit his leg.

“I was walking down and heard rapid fire,” he told Ellen.

“And at first I took cover. I felt a burning sensation. I went to go lift my pant leg up and I saw the blood. That’s when I called it in on my radio that shots have been fired.

“And I was going to say that I was hit, but I got on … my cell phone just to clear radio traffic so they could coordinate the rest of the call.”

Mr Schuck said the gunshots initially sounded like a jackhammer and it was difficult to determine whether the sound was coming from outside or the hallway.

Mr Campos yelled out for him to “take cover, take cover” –  a warning that Mr Schuck claimed saved him from being shot.

“I wasn’t fully in cover, and (shots) were passing behind my head and I could feel the pressure,” Mr Schuck said.

The young security guard thanked emergency services, first responders and the community for banding together during this difficult time.

“Everything puts pieces together on how everyone came together to help that night even in the darkest hour,” he said.

Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo first reported that Mr Campos had been shot “after” the gunman opened fire on the festival crowd.

Degeneres praised the guard as a “hero” and his presence could have deterred the gunman from firing for longer, aware that authorities could soon be closing in.

“You being shot in the leg saved so many people’s lives,” she said. “We just wanted to celebrate you.”

She noted that the show had offered to pay the pair for the interview but they had refused the money, instead gifting them tickets to see their favourite sports teams play.

Mr Campos indicated he would not provide any further public comment on the attack.