Las Vegas Metro Police and medical workers block off an intersection after a mass shooting at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. Picture: AP
A lone shooter has opened fire at a country music festival in Las Vegas, carrying out the deadliest mass killing in US history.
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This is what we know so far:
- At least 58 people have been shot dead and a further 515 are hurt. The death toll is almost certain to rise.
- No Australians have been identified at this stage as being among the victims, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says. "We know that a number of Australians were in the vicinity or are in the vicinity, but at this stage – and the situation is evolving – no Australians have been identified amongst the victims or those injured," she told Nine.
Police run to cover at the scene of a shooting near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Picture: AP
- The man behind the shootings has been named as retired accountant Stephen Paddock, 64.
- Before he opened fire, the gunman was living out his retirement as a high-stakes professional gambler in a quiet town outside Las Vegas.
- Paddock fired round after round from the 32nd storey of the Mandalay Bay Resort, which was next to the Route 91 Harvest Festival, where 30,000 people had gathered.
- The gunfire reportedly lasted about five minutes.
- The tragedy is the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.
Police officers advise people to take cover near the scene of a shooting near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Picture: AP
- Paddock, who had at least 10 firearms in his hotel room, is understood to have shot himself dead.
- The smoke from the guns, which set of a smoke alarm, allowed a SWAT team to locate Paddock's room in 20 minutes.
- Last Vegas police are investigating a possible connection between Paddock and Australian woman Marilou Danley. It is believed she lived with Paddock but is not in the US at the moment.
- An off-duty Las Vegas police officer was among those killed during the shooting, according to Las Vegas police.
A police officer takes cover behind a truck at the scene of a shooting near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Picture: AP
- Festival-goer Sonny Melton, a 29-year-old nurse from West Tennessee, is the first victim to be identified. He was killed as he tried to shield his wife, Heather, from the gunfire.
- US President Donal Trump has made no comment about gun control.
- Hillary Clinton has said "our grief isn't enough" and that it was time legislators stood up to the National Rifle Association.
- The FBI says there is no link between gunman Stephen Paddock and international terrorist groups. Earlier ISIS claimed Paddock was one of their soldiers and had converted to Islam but did not provide any evidence to support this claim.
Marilou Danley, the companion of the Las Vegas shooter, is understood to be Australian. Photo: LVMPD
