Las Vegas
Shooting Near Mandalay Bay Is Said to Kill at Least 2
A gunman
opened fire Sunday night at a concert outside a Las Vegas casino hotel,
sending
people fleeing as SWAT units searched for the attacker and the police
investigated reports of shootings elsewhere in the city. At least two people
were killed and 24 others injured, hospital officials said.
Reports said
that the shooting happened near the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. Video
posted online showed a musician performing outside the hotel at Route 91
Harvest, a country music festival, interrupted by the sound of automatic
gunfire. The music stopped, and concertgoers ducked for cover. “Get down,” one
shouted. “Stay down,” screamed another.
Several SWAT
teams were sent to the hotel, and officers reported being pinned down by
gunfire, according to emergency radio traffic. Shortly before midnight the Las
Vegas Police Metropolitan Police Department reported that “one suspect is
down,” and soon thereafter the police said they did not believe there were any
more active gunmen.
Confirming
that one suspect is down. This is an active investigation. Again, please do not
head down to the Strip at this time.
Twenty-six
people were admitted to the hospital, Danita Cohen, a spokeswoman for University
Medical Center, told The Associated Press. Of those, at least two died, 12 were
in critical condition, and the rest were being evaluated, she said.
In the
confusion after the shooting, the police also descended on the Ali Baba
Restaurant, about a 10-minute drive from the Mandalay Bay, and they also
investigated reports of a shooting at the New York-New York Hotel and Casino.
The police
reported clearing out the Mandalay Bay’s 29th floor and working their way up to
the 32nd floor. A police Twitter post described reports of an “active shooter”
near or around the Mandalay Bay Casino
One officer
reported that civilians were “trying to take patrol cars,” but it was unclear
why.
Shooting in
Las Vegas.
Two
concertgoers, Robyn and Matt Webb, described hearing round after round of
gunfire.
“It just
kept coming,” Robyn Webb told The Las Vegas Review-Journal. “It was
relentless.”
They said
they saw about 20 people bleeding in the street.
“That’s when
we knew for sure it was real,” Matt Webb said.
The police
reported closing off about a mile of Las Vegas Boulevard and asked the public
to steer clear of the area.
Police radio
reports suggested that at least three people were transported to Sunrise
Hospital and Medical Center for treatment. The police were told not to bring
additional casualties — unless the injuries were life-threatening — to
University Medical Center, another nearby hospital, because it was at capacity.
McCarran
International Airport in Las Vegas said that some flights destined for the
airport were diverted because of police activity. The airport is just east of
the Mandalay hotel, and after the shooting there were reports of people fleeing
the concert by running onto an airport runway.
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