Update 8:15 a.m.:President Trump issued a statement calling for prayers for victims and their families, adding, "We call upon the bonds of citizenship, the ties of community and the comfort of our common humanity. Our unity cannot be shattered by evil. Our bonds cannot be broken by violence. And though we feel such great anger at the senseless murder of citizens, it is our love that defines us today and always will forever.” President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will visit Las Vegas on Wednesday.
Update 7:30 a.m.: The death toll has climbed to 50, the Los Angeles Times now reports, with over 400 people transported to hospitals. This is now the deadliest mass shooting inn U.S. history. The suspect is identified as Stephen Paddock of Mesquite, Nevada, ABC News reports. Other hotels now believed safe; rumors of explosives arose from police use of them at Mandalay to access shooter's room.
For families looking to locate missing loved ones,call 1-866-535-5654.
By Miriam Raftery
October 2, 2017 (San Diego) 1:45 a.m. - A horrific mass shooting has just occurred in Las Vegas. Police confirm that at least 20 people are dead and more than 100 injured, many seriously. The shooting occurred at the Route 91 Harvest country music concert outdoors across the street from the Mandalay Bay hotel.
The shooter, who shot from a hotel window at the Mandalay onto the crowd below with what audiotapes suggest was a fully automatic military-style weapon, is now dead. Authorities also found 10 "assault" weapons in his room, Las Vegas authorities told media.
Police are reportedly looking for a "companion" named Marilou Danley, described as an Asian woman 4 ft. 11 inches in height and a second woman for whom no description has been provided. They are also searching for two vehicles:
Hyundai Tucson | Nevada license plate 114B40
Chrysler Pacifica | Nevada license plate 19D401
The rapid fire shots caused panic as thousands of concert goers struggled to determine where shots were coming from and how to escape.
Much of the Las Vegas strip is shut down along with Interstate 15 as the investigation continues.
There was also a report of a suspicious device outside another hotel in Vegas.
Visitors in Vegas are advised to avoid the area.
The shooter has not yet been identified, nor the motive of the shooter, though police have indicated he was a local Las Vegas resident.
For live local coverage on Las Vegas ABC affiliate channel 13, see http://www.ktnv.com/news/crime/police-respond-to-reports-of-active-shooter-near-mandalay-bay.
Photos: two suspects, Stephen Paddock and Marilou Danley
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It is Time
It's time for gun and ammunition control measures to be legislated and enforced. If you like to hunt or target shoot there is no threat to your enjoying doing so. Having a freezer full of wild game to feed your family and friends is OK.
Fees paid for a hunting or fishing license fund management of these resources that allow their survival.
The Slaughter In Las Vegas - LA Times Editorial
In reading yesterday's Los Angeles Times Newspaper, it stated: "What will it take for Americans to wake up and take the steps necessary to reduce gun violence?" As a victim of gun violence myself, as well as two sons and a nephew in Chicago, this resonates with me more than one might imagine. Although my two sons survived the horrific ordeal of getting shot at the same time, and at the ages of 11 and 16, my nephew was not so fortunate.
I picked up the LA Times Newspaper yesterday at Union Station in Los Angeles, and the editorial further went on to state: "The Nation awakened Monday morning to yet another pointless, blood-filled tragedy that stupefied, saddened and appalled us all. But if history i any guide, it will not propel us to meaningful action. Once again a man - and it's almost always a man - has committed what by now is the most American of acts, in this case weilding fully automatic military-style firearms to mow down a staggeringnumber of innocent people. Not in self-defense, not in the heat of battle, not, as far as we can tell, in pursuit of any defined objective, but simply to satisfy some inchoate rage, frustration or alienation. As of now, 59 are dead and more than 500 are wounded in Las Vegas, where police say 64-year-old Stephen Paddock rained bullets from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel into a crowd of 22,000 people attending an outdoor country music festival. No motivation can possibly make such a barbaric act comprehensible, nor can it lessen the pain and grief that will be shared by hundreds of families. Our hearts go out to them."