Las Vegas attack is deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history

Caitlin Dickson
·Reporter

At least 58 people were killed and more than 489 wounded when a gunman opened fire during a country music concert in Las Vegas Sunday night, making it the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

The suspected shooter, 64-year-old Stephen Paddock, was found dead in his hotel room on the 32nd floor of at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, from which he had been firing at the crowd attending the outdoor concert across the street. Police said they found “numerous firearms” in Paddock’s hotel room.

Prior to Sunday night’s massacre, the deadliest shooting in recent history had taken place at a nightclub in Orlando, Fla. in June 2016, where 49 people were killed, not including the gunman, Omar Mateen.

Mateen, 29, had opened fire inside the popular gay club Pulse at about 2 a.m. on June 12, 2016. According to police, the shooting — which authorities described as a “domestic terror attack” — quickly turned into a hostage situation as the 300-plus people inside the club tried to escape.

Mateen was killed by SWAT officers approximately three hours after he began shooting.

(AP/Yahoo News)
(AP/Yahoo News)

It was initially reported that 20 people had been killed in the attack, but at a news conference later that Sunday morning, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said the death toll was approximately 50, a number that included Mateen himself.

The U.S. has a long history of mass shootings. Prior to last year’s attack in Orlando, the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting had been the deadliest, with 32 fatalities in addition to the shooter.

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