On June 12 , , year-old Omar Mateen shot and killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in a mass shooting at Pulse , a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida , United States before Orlando Police officers fatally shot him after a three-hour standoff. In a call made shortly after the shooting began, Mateen swore allegiance to the leader of the Islamic State , Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi , and said the U.
The incident was deemed a terrorist attack by FBI investigators. Pulse was hosting a "Latin Night," and most of the victims were Latino. The shooting was the deadliest terrorist attack in the United States since the September 11 attacks , and the deadliest mass shooting in modern U. On June 11 , , Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, was hosting "Latin Night," a weekly Saturday night event drawing a primarily Latino crowd. EDT on June Gruler took cover and called in a signal for assistance.
He told a post-incident Police Foundation assessment team that he had immediately recognized that his handgun would be severely disadvantaged against the rifle Mateen was using. During the shooting, some of the people trapped inside the club sought help by calling or sending text messages to friends and relatives. Initially, some of them thought the gunshots were firecrackers or part of the music.
One person shielded herself by hiding inside a bathroom and covering herself with bodies. A bartender said she took cover beneath the glass bar. At least one patron tried to help those who were hit. According to one of the hostages, Mateen entered a bathroom in the nightclub's northwest side and opened fire on the people hiding there, wounding several.
The hostage, who had taken cover inside a stall with others, was injured by two bullets and struck with flying pieces of a wall hit by stray bullets. Shortly after entering the women's restroom, Mateen's rifle jammed. He then discarded the rifle and switched to his Glock 17 pistol. Patrons trapped inside called or texted to warn of the possible presence of explosives. Eighty fire and emergency medical services personnel from the Orlando Fire Department were deployed during the entire incident.
