United States

Vegas Still in Shock Following Deadly Mass Shooting; Investigators Continue to Process Scene

Concertgoers who survived the mass shooting in Las Vegas are still reeling from the tragedy as law enforcement officials continue to process the scene on Tuesday.

The gunman, identified as 64-year-old Stephen Paddock, of Mesquite, Nevada, fired from a room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, according to investigators, killing at least 59 people and injuring more than 500 others who were attending a country music festival. Paddock then killed himself at the scene.

NBC Boston reporter Monica Madeja traveled to Las Vegas and was able to speak with concertgoers like Anthony Luca, who watched the horror unfold.

"It was just... you started seeing people on the bottom right side of the stage getting hit," Luca said. "And then people were screaming, running, hitting the floor."

Luca was at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival with friends. He said he escaped by hiding and dodging bullets.

"We hid in a bush and I grabbed my friend's hand and we started praying right there in the bush," Luca recalled.

Windows at the Mandalay Bay were still broken, shattered by the gunman, while cars and buses were left in the middle of Las Vegas Boulevard. Flowers were also left for the victims.

"You don't feel like you're in Vegas right now," said Luca as he surveyed the surreal scene.

What's being called the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history has now cut short vacations for many tourists, including David Mojica.

"It's hard to enjoy. You see people's faces and everyone is just quiet," Mojica said.

Luca said he took shelter in an airplane hangar. He said he can't stop thinking about his experience, which included helping to treat a man who was shot.

"The way that strangers united in the hangar last night was the beauty after the evil," he said.

The Las Vegas County Commissioner established a GoFundMe page to support victims, which has received more than 30,000 donations totaling nearly $3 million.

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