UPDATE 6:47 a.m. ET: At least 50 people have been confirmed dead and another 200 injured, multiple outlets reported.
UPDATE 6:18 a.m. ET: Police have identified the Las Vegas shooter
as 64-year-old Stephen Paddock
BREAKING: Las Vegas shooter has been identified as 64-year-old Stephen Paddock
— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 2, 2017
At least 20 people are dead and more than 100 injured after a sniper opened fire around 10:00 p.m. Sunday along the Las Vegas Strip, near the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, multiple outlets reported.
As many as 30,000 people were outside across the street from the hotel for the last night of the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival, where country music star Jason Aldean was performing, when multiple shots rang out, ABC News reported.
Footage posted to social media captured the horror of the moments.
Insane…. this JUST happened. #PrayForVegas pic.twitter.com/RWgjFW7BHy
— Luke (@LukeBroadlick) October 2, 2017
“They were firing from somewhere high, and they were unloading clip after clip after clip after clip. It was hundreds of shots,” one witness told KSNV-TV. The witness added that there “ha[d] to be” multiple shooters, but police but Las Vegas Sheriff Joe Lombardo said he is “pretty confident” the gunman acted alone.
Lombardo said the suspect, a local resident who was not identified, is now dead. Lombardo said the suspect was traveling with a female “companion,” who officers are trying to locate. Lombardo identified the woman as Mari Lou Danle. Lombardo said officers took the gunman down on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel, from where it is believed the shots were fired.
Police urged people to stay clear of the Strip. Some flights in and out of Las Vegas McCarran International Airport were diverted due to the airport’s close proximity to the crime scene.
Aldean wrote in an Instagram post that he and and his crew are safe.
“Tonight has been beyond horrific,” the country music star wrote. “My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved tonight. It hurts my heart that this would happen to anyone who was just coming out to enjoy what should have been a fun night. #heartbroken #stopthehate”
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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