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Police: Approximately 20 killed in Florida club shooting
Mike Schneider, Associated Press,Associated Press 5 minutes ago Comments Sign in to like Reblog on Tumblr Share Tweet Email

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- A gunman wielding an assault-type rifle and a handgun opened fire inside a crowded Florida nightclub early Sunday before dying in a gunfight with SWAT officers, police said. The attack left about 20 people dead and 42 others wounded.

Authorities were investigating it as an act of terrorism.

The suspect exchanged gunfire with an officer working at the gay club known as Pulse Orlando around 2 a.m., when more than 300 people were 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. Police have not determined an exact number of casualties, but Mina said "approximately 20" bodies were inside the club.

In addition to the guns, the shooter also had some sort of "suspicious device," Mina said.

Authorities were looking into whether the attack was an act of domestic or international terror, 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.

FBI agent Ron Hopper said there was no further threat to Orlando or the surrounding area.

When asked if the gunman had a connection to radical Islamic terrorism, Hopper said authorities had "suggestions that individual has leanings towards that."

Police had said previously on Twitter that there was a "controlled explosion" at the scene of the shooting. Mina said that noise was caused by a device intended to distract the shooter.

A woman who was outside the dance 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."

Dozens of police vehicles swarmed the area around the club. At least two police pickup trucks were seen taking what appeared to be shooting victims to the Orlando Regional Medical Center.

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."

Local, state and federal agencies were investigating.

President Barack Obama was briefed on the attack and has asked for regular updates on the investigation, the White House said.

The attack follows the fatal shooting late Friday of 22-year-old singer Christina Grimmie, who was killed after her concert in Orlando by a 27-year-old Florida man who later killed himself. Grimmie was a YouTube sensation and former contestant on "The Voice."

Jon Alamo said he was at the back of one of the club's rooms when a man holding a weapon came into the front of the room.

"I heard 20, 40, 50 shots," Alamo said. "The music stopped."

Club-goer Rob Rick said the shooting started just before closing time.

"Everybody was drinking their last sip," he said.

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 in the back where only workers are allowed. People inside were able to then 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 police urged people to back away from the club. He saw the wounded being tended to 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."

___

This story has been corrected to show that Banks is with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, not the FBI.


https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/orlan...-082553236.html

It's been updated to 50 dead and 53 injured. Terrible news.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2016/06/12/dem-rep-orlando-shooter-pledged-to-isis.html

Rep. Adam Schiff, the senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told CNN that Omar Mateen pledged allegiance to ISIS before attacking an Orlando, Florida gay nightclub and killing 53 people.

Don't all these situations have one thing in common. If you have a western hemisphere, and an eastern hemisphere, these folks hail from the eastern hemisphere.

He's got guys who are being watched by the Feds, but because of congress and the lobbying by the NRA, he can't do anything about these suspected terrorist from not getting any weapons.

So is this the first US soil ISIS attack? I think it is.

I hope this does not turn into another gun control thread.

I wonder if we could ever discuss the reasons why a person would commit such a heinous act? And what can we do to help prevent raising such monsters?

Look at his sect. ISIS practices a radical version of Islam called jihad.

That tells you all you need to know. His dad said he hates when two guys kiss. So combined with his already warped mentality on religion, he hates gay people.

I hope this does not turn into another gun control thread.

I wonder if we could ever discuss the reasons why a person would commit such a heinous act? And what can we do to help prevent raising such monsters?

And that's the thing bro. Why is somebody who's being tracked as a potential terrorist allowed to get weapons and a permit to carry?

It just makes sense to not allow THOSE kind of people who are under the watch of the Feds to get a weapon.

So im blaming the shooter. I'm blaming his radical version of religion, I'm blaming congress, the NRA, and the Feds. I'm blaming the culture of hate the LGBT community gets.

I'm not saying the incident would not have happened bro, but what I'm saying is that if he was forced to get a weapon illegally, AT least we know the system is competent enough to not allow tragedies like this a legal way.

Are you proposing to not allow muslims to buy guns in this country? Don't forget, the terrorists in San Bernardino had someone else purchase their weapons. It looks like the best thing to do is to stop the government from using all their 'political correctness', and have the feds investigate certain people. They did it in the 1930s with Nazis and in the 1950s with communists.

Islam isn't radical.

Jihad is.

Just like how you have Christianity... And then the people that followed jim jones. There's a very distinct difference.