At least 50 were dead and 53 others are injured in the Orlando, Florida night club shooting early morning on Sunday, June 12.
The attack is the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, surpassing the shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007 where 32 people were killed.
Officials identified the shooter as Omar Mateen of Port St. Lucie, FL. He is a U.S. citizen, however, police officials said his family members are not U.S. citizens.
Police are searching the gunman's home as well as social media for evidence. Mateen is suspected of carrying out a hostage situation in what officials are calling "domestic terrorism" and police and FBI are investigating if he had ties to a terrorist groups.
Police responded to calls of a shooting at 2 a.m. Eastern and exchanged gunfire with a shooter inside Pulse, a gay night club. The gunman then took hostages and police entered the club about three hours later, exchanging more gunfire and killing the suspect.
Orlando Police Chief John Mina confirmed the shooter was carrying an assault style rifle, a handgun and a "suspicious device" with him. He said officers decided to rescue the hostages at 5 a.m. using an explosive device to enter through a wall in the club. At 5:45 a.m., police tweeted that the suspect was dead.
Mina said about 30 people were rescued after police entered the building. One officer was injured in the crossfire, but was wearing a protective helmet that Mina said likely saved his life.
Muhammad Musri, with the Islamic Society of Central Florida appeared at a police press conference and urged caution in passing judgment without knowing the facts surrounding the suspect and his motivation.
Police said the shooter was "organized and well-prepared" and is not from the Orlando area. Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings called it a "domestic terrorism incident."
Dozens of vehicles including the Orlando Fire Department's bomb squad and hazardous material team arrived at the scene of the shooting.
Near the time of the shooting, the club posted on its Facebook page, "Everyone get out of Pulse and keep running."
After news of the shooting, family members and friends of people who were known to be in the club awaited word about injuries or possible deaths.
Reports also have it that three Orlando area hospitals have been placed on lockdown because of the mass shooting. There were reports of additional shots fired at a nearby hospital, but Mina said that claim was unfounded.
As day broke Sunday morning, buses arrived to transport those who had not been injured but were inside the club at the time. On Twitter, the police called calling for witnesses to go to police HQ.
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