ORLANDO, Fla. -- A gunman wielding an assault-type rifle and a handgun opened fire inside a crowded gay nightclub early Sunday, killing at least 50 people before dying in a gunfight with SWAT officers, police said. It was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.
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Authorities were investigating the attack on the Florida dance club as an act of terrorism. The gunman's father recalled that his son recently got angry when he saw two men kissing in Miami and said that might be related to the assault.
Multiple news outlets reported that the shooter had called 911 shortly before the attack and pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. Those reports cited unnamed law enforcement officials.
At least 53 people were hospitalized, most in critical condition, officials said. A surgeon at Orlando Regional Medical Center said the death toll was likely to climb.
"There's blood everywhere," Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said.
All of the dead were killed with the assault rifle, according to Rep. Alan Grayson.
Witnesses described a chaotic scene when the gunfire began shortly before the club known as Pulse was to close.
"Some guy walked in and started shooting everybody. He had an automatic rifle, so nobody stood a chance," said Jackie Smith, who had two friends next to her get shot. "I just tried to get out of there."
The suspect exchanged gunfire with a police officer working at the club, which had more than 300 people inside. The gunman then went back inside and took hostages, Police Chief John Mina said.
Around 5 a.m., authorities sent in a SWAT team to rescue the hostages.
Pulse posted on its own 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. Please keep everyone in your prayers as we work through this tragic event. Thank you for your thoughts and love."
In addition to the assault rifle, the shooter also had some sort of "suspicious device," the police chief said.
In the immediate aftermath of the attack, police departments across the country stepped up patrols in neighborhoods frequented by the LGBT community.
Authorities were looking into whether the attack was an act of domestic or international terrorism, and if the shooter acted alone, according to Danny Banks, an agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
"This is an incident, as I see it, that we certainly classify as domestic terror incident," Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said.
The previous deadliest mass shooting in the U.S. was the 2007 attack at Virginia Tech, where a student killed 32 people before killing himself.
The suspect in the Orlando attack was identified as Omar Mateen, 29, of Port St. Lucie, Florida.
Grayson, a Florida Democrat, named the shooter, citing law enforcement officials. A federal law enforcement official with knowledge of the investigation confirmed the name. The official was not authorized to discuss the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Mateen's father, Mir Seddique, told NBC News about his son seeing the men kissing a couple of months ago.
"We are saying we are apologizing for the whole incident," Seddique said. "We are in shock like the whole country."
The law enforcement official said Mateen was known to the FBI before the nightclub attack and had been looked at by agents within the last few years.
The matter for which he came under investigation was "open and closed pretty quickly," the official said.
When asked if the gunman had a connection to radical Islamic terrorism, FBI agent Ron Hopper said authorities had "suggestions that individual has leanings towards that."
Mateen's father said the attack had nothing to do with religion, he said.
The gunman had been licensed as a private security guard in Florida. It was not immediately clear if he had actually worked in such a job. The license requires 28 hours of classroom training.
State records show that Mateen had held a firearms license since at least 2011. It was set to expire in 2017.
President Barack Obama called the shooting an "act of terror" and an "act of hate" targeting a place of "solidarity and empowerment" for gays and lesbians. He urged Americans to decide whether this is the kind of "country we want to be."
Authorities said they had secured a van owned by the suspect outside the club. Meanwhile, a SWAT truck and a bomb-disposal unit were on the scene of an address associated with Mateen in a residential neighborhood of Fort Pierce, Florida, about 118 miles southeast of Orlando.
Relatives and friends, many in tears, gathered outside the hospital to learn the fate of loved ones.
Smith did not know the conditions of her wounded friends. She came out of the hospital and burst into tears.
Christine Leinonen drove to Orlando at 4 a.m. after learning of the shooting from a friend of her 32-year-old son, Christopher Leinonen, who was at Pulse and is missing.
She had not heard from her son and feared the worst.
"These are nonsensical killings of our children," she said, sobbing. "They're killing our babies!"
She said her son's friend Brandon Wolf survived by hiding in a bathroom and running out as the bullets flew.
A woman who was outside the club early Sunday was trying to contact her 30-year-old son, Eddie, who texted her when the shooting happened and asked her to call police. He told her he ran into a bathroom with other club patrons to hide. He then texted her: "He's coming."
"The next text said: 'He has us, and he's in here with us,'" Mina Justice said. "That was the last conversation."
A bartender said she initially thought the gunshots were music. But after a second shot, there was a pause, followed by more shots. That's when Tiffany Johnson realized something was wrong.
Johnson said people dropped to the ground and started running out of the club. She ran to a fast-food restaurant across the street and met one of her customers who let her get in his car. They drove away.
Club-goer Rob Rick said the shooting started just as "everybody was drinking their last sip."
He estimated more than 100 people were still inside when he heard shots, got on the ground and crawled toward a DJ booth. A bouncer knocked down a partition between the club area and an area where only workers are allowed. People were then able to escape through the back of the club.
Christopher Hansen said he was in the VIP lounge when he heard gunshots. He continued to hear shooting even after he emerged and saw the wounded being tended across the street.
"I was thinking, 'Are you kidding me?' So I just dropped down. I just said, 'Please, please, please, I want to make it out,'" he said. "And when I did, I saw people shot. I saw blood. You hope and pray you don't get shot."
The attack follows the fatal shooting late Friday of 22-year-old singer Christina Grimmie, a YouTube sensation and former contestant on "The Voice." She was killed after an Orlando concert by a 27-year-old man who later killed himself.
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White House Reaction
The White House released the following statement after the nightclub shooting:
"The President was briefed this morning by Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, on the tragic shooting in Orlando, Florida. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of the victimes. The President asked to received regular updates as the FBI, and other federal officials, work with the Orlando Police to gather more information, and directed that the federal government provide any assistance necessary to pursue the investigation and support the community."
Community Reaction
In response to the tragedy in Orlando, Equality NC Executive Director Chris Sgro released the following statement:
“We are reeling from the tragedy unfolding in Orlando right now. Equality NC's thoughts and prayers are with our LGBT brothers and sisters, not just in Florida but also across the nation today. The deadly attack in Orlando, as the worst mass shooting in United States History, also marks the worst mass shooting against the LGBT community in the United States.
The LGBT community has historically faced adversity across the nation and world, and because of that we are resilient and we will continue to stand strong against violence and hatred.
Equality NC and other LGBT organizations will continue to follow the investigation into the incident. We will also continue to hold ourselves out as a resource for LGBT North Carolinians during this difficult time.”
The GLBT Community Center of Central Florida released this statement on Facebook:
"We are saddened and shocked at the tragedy that took place overnight at Pulse Nightclub. The Center is partnering with MBA, Hope and Help, Two Spirit Health, Zebra Coalition, Rollins, and various other GLBT organizations throughout Central Florida to coordinate an emergency hotline and grief counselors on site at The Center, located at 942 N Mills Avenue.
"When news broke of the tragedy, all of the resources from every GLBT organization in Central Florida sprung into action to organize our response. We stand united to provide every resource to our friends and family in the wake of this senseless act.
"The community can call the hotline at 407-228-1446 and counselors will be on site at The Center throughout the day and week."
In response to the Orlando shootings, the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team is sending crisis-trained chaplains to Orlando. The chaplains plan to assess where and how to best offer emotional and spiritual care following the horrific attack.
“My prayers are with the many victims and family members who lost loved ones in the senseless shooting—now being called an act of terrorism—at a gay nightclub in Orlando early this morning,” said BGEA president Franklin Graham. “Life is precious, and we only have one chance to live our lives here on this earth.”