Witnesses described a chaotic scene when the gunfire began shortly before the club known as Pulse was to close. Meanwhile, the city of Orlando’s website has begun releasing the names of the victims. “There’s blood everywhere,” Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said. Thank you for your thoughts and love.”Ī surgeon at Orlando Regional Medical Center said the death toll was likely to climb. Please keep everyone in your prayers as we work through this tragic event.
Pulse posted on its Facebook page around 2 a.m.: “Everyone get out of pulse and keep running.” Just before 6 a.m., the club posted an update: “As soon as we have any information, we will update everyone. Orlando SWAT teams launched a rescue mission at around 5 a.m., in which the shooter was killed. However, Mateen was still able to hold a number of the patrons hostage. The shooting occurred around 2 a.m., when the club had some 300 people inside, many of whom fled as gunshots rang out. In Orlando, Police Chief John Mina said police are still investigating the massacre that left the Pulse nightclub’s parking lot looking like a triage scene. Orlando Nightclub Mass Shooting: The World Reacts … Times of unspeakable tragedy and evil like this are the moments to remind the killers, and the world, of what is best in us, and what unites us.” The violence is not normal, and the targeting of our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans is evil and abhorrent. But our prayers are not enough to end these kinds of senseless mass shootings. Vice President Joe Biden echoed the president’s comments in a statement saying, “Jill and I offer our prayers and deepest condolences for all those affected by today’s horrific events. Speaking from the White House, Obama said the United States has to decide if that is the “country we want to be.” He said that doing nothing is a decision as well.
Obama said the shooting is a further reminder of how easy it is for someone to get a weapon that allows them to shoot people in a school, in a house of worship, a movie theater or a gay nightclub. “We are united in grief and resolve to defend our people.” “We know enough to say this is an act of terror and an act of hate,” President Obama said in the five-minute speech before reporters. He called the shooting “the most deadly shooting in American history” and ordered American flags to be flown at half-staff across the nation. President Barack Obama addressed the nation regarding the tragedy, saying the White House is working with the FBI and national security to investigate the shooting and that more will be known in the coming days. Santa Monica Police Arrest Man With Explosives, Guns Going to L.A.