captioning sponsored by cbs >> pelley: massacre in orlando. >> oh my god, people are getting shot. >> this was an ak of terror, and an act of hate. >> pelley: a gunman opens fire in a gay nightclub. >> there were bodies, people that were wounded. just to get them out of the way. >> pelley: at least 50 are killed in the deadliest mass shooting in u.s. history. many more are wounded. >> i don't know where my son is. no one can tell me where my son is. if he's been shot, if he's dead no one knows. >> pelley: isis claims responsibility. >> the individual has been identified as omar mateen. we need to support each other. we need to love each other and

we will not be defined by a hateful shooter. we'll be defined how we support and love each other. >> pelley: this is the. >> this is the cbs eke end news. >> pelley: this say special edition of the weekend news. if you are just joining us, we have the latest now on this mass shooting in orlando, florida. a massacre in a gay nightclub that occurred in the early hours this morning and is now the worst mass shooting in american history. at least 50 people were killed. most of their bodies are still inside the club. the shooting began after 12:00 this morning. the gunman omar mateen was an american. he was a security guard who had pledged his loyalty to isis during a 911 call during his

attack on the club. he was killed in a shootout with police. there were about 300 people in the club sipping their last drinks before the club closed. with the more on that, we have mark strassmann. >> reporter: 15 minutes after last call, bartender tiffany johnson heard something ominous. was that a gun shot? >> i thought it was like the stereo, oh, something went on with, you know, just the music. and after the second shot there was a pause and then it just started shooting, shooting, shooting, shooting. >> reporter: then bed lamb. partyers hit the deck. others hid under tables or ran into bathrooms. rough-- roughly 300 people were trapped inside. one in six would die. this man has three friends missing. >> people are screaming, help me, help me, i'm trapped. people were getting tramp eled. there was no clear exit sign at

the club so we didn't know which goor to take or where to go. >> reporter: so you heard a couple of shots. did you hit the deck right away. >> it was like a-- kind of like a little duck like. >> reporter: josh ran out the back exit, hopped a fence and saved a life. he found a man lying on the ground, moaning. did he look wounded. >> it looked like he got shot but didn't real eye he got shot. >> reporter: the 127 year old was wounded in bolts arms and the upper back. >> and i was like there is no ambulance responding at the moment but we will send you in a police car. so the police officer turned to me and said we want to you bear hug him, keep him con shussments i was like okay, i don't know if are you religious but i feel like i am going to say a prayer. i was like you are going to be fine, i was like, i got you, man. rtd mcgill told me he has yet to process how lucky he is to be alive. he is also yet to reach sumpter in the hospital. but scott, he was told there

that the man he helped rescue is expected to live. mark strassmann, thank you so much, mark. our homeland security correspondent jeff pegues has been talking to his sources all day long. and he's joining us now. jeff, what do you know? >> scott, we're learning a lot more about that 911 call that was mentioned. the one that omar mateen made during that mass shooting. it was the one where he pledged allegiance to isis. according to a u.s. intelligence source the call came from a bathroom at the nightclub. and at some point 911 had to actually call him back. we don't know why, whether the call was dropped. by 911 dispatchers actually called him back. and at that point we were told he made this pledge to isis and also made a reference to the tsarnaev brothers and the boston bombing. and so that, scott, is some of the new information that we've just learned. >> pelley: jeff, we understand

that mateen had been contacted by the fbi more than once. what do you know about that? >> well, there were at least two contacts. one in 2013 and one in 2014. in 2013 there were statements that he made to coworker-- workers according to law enforcement sources that stated some sort of connection to the tsarnaev brothers, who carried out the boston am bog am then in 2014 there was another alleged contact suggesting a link to an american suicide bomber. monar salah who blew himself up in syria. soo there were indications that mateen had some sort of contact with him. both men were from the fort piecer area of florida but ultimately the fbi decided that there wasn't enough there to pursue a full-fledged investigation. what investigatedders are looking at now is whether there are any direct con tablghts to

operatives overseas in connection with the nightclub attack, scott? >> jeff pegues in the washington newsroom, jeff, thank you very much. all day long around major hospitals here in orlando there has been a vigil, of families who have not been able to contact their loved ones and are waiting outside the hospitals with the hope that they will learn at some point that their missing loved one is in the hospital and has survived. our correspondent jamie yuccas has more on this bns 24 year old jose mar tins went to pulse nightclub to kick off pride week. his cell phone died and his family didn't know what happened to him. jafier rossale did. >> he works at the six days a week. >> they learned he is in critical can. martin and mike rel a couple. mike sell in the hospital, no one has heard from martin.

>> we're hoping he is okay. we're trying to give updates to the family members. >> 50 people have died. 53 others went to the hospital. families are waiting. many not sure if their loved ones are being treated or if they died. jose ornado is searching for his brother. >> he was in the club with three of his friends. and they may it out okay but they lost him and they don't know where he is at. my brother is over there waiting for information. i just came back here to see if they know something. >> reporter: the hospital is one block from the hotel where family and friends are gathering. the witnesses and volunteers are coming together for the victims, stunned by the loss of life. christopher kalon say worker at the club. >> and in our community today t is not a good thing. we're not trying to hurt anybody. we're just trying to have fun. >> a few moments okay i was standing talking to two young men who were in club last night. they were here at the hospital

to visit their friends who just had his second leg surgery because of a bullet wound. while i was talking to them, they learned that their friend's mother had died. not only was it heartbreaking to watch that, but now there's fear that there could be more stories like that. we know 53 other people went to area hospitals. the worst here in the orlando regional medical centre. a surgeon here says there will be more victims. the death toll will climb. scott? >> pelley: jamie yuccas, reporting for us tonight. jamie, thank you. and right now we have the mayor of orlando buddy dyer with us. what is the latest from the hospitals as you understand it? when would those families begin to learn about their loved ones. >> well, the hospital, well, let's step back. we were able to get hipa regulations for this to be able to notify some of the patients proif see regulations.

so the hospital has notified the families of patients that they are caring for, okay. so if you weren't one of the families that has somebody that is in surgery or being cared for, you probably have an idea that your family member is unfortunately in the other group. we hope to identify all of the victims this evening. it's been a very painstaking process because 40 of the victim prses in the nightclub, a scene that the fbi had to close for evidencary purposes. they are working on, victim by victim. we have a website whereas we identify victims and notify the next of kin, we can go ahead and list them. because it has to be just a horrible thing for a family to kind of know but not really know what has happened. when i got the call this morning at 3:00, the first thing i did was call my 26 year old son and say where are you. he was home in bed.

and. >> are the bodies still inside the club, all 50? >> no, they are not. some are, that they started the process of relocating them over to the medical director for identification. >> pelley: and you expect all of the bodies to be removed to the coroner's office by what time? >> i would hope by late this evening, no later than early morning. >> pelley: what more do we know about the gunman? >> whatever the fbi has detailed, i have not been focused quite honestly on his identify and his specifics. i'm more focused on taking care of the families and friends of the victims and doing what we can to rally the people in orlando. we're not going to be defined by that individual. we're going to be defined by how we respond and lift up those in need. >> your police deptd put an end to this fairly quickly. >> i'm so proud of the men and women of the opd, there were as you mentioned over 300 individuals in that club it could have been worse.

but our first officer that engaged the gunman probably allowed a lot of people to get out the back and then about 5:00 we were able to breach a wall and rescue between 15 and 20 of the hostages. that's when we engaged the gunman and took him down. >> pelley: there were reports earlier this morning that as many as 20 people have been killed. and then you came out and told the nation that the number was 50. when the police officers told you that, it was horrible. >> it was horrible to find that out. we had had an estimate from a police officer that had originally engaged with the shooter we couldn't go back in because we thought there were explosive deadvices so until the building had been cleared, a bomb robot went in. we couldn't go back in and specifically identify, ants then it was shocking how many were actually in there. >> pelley: were there any explosive devices. there were not. 58 though there have been test

messages about the shooter outfitting hos imagines-- hostages with explosive vests, that turned out not to be true. and when he was killed there was a battery pack that was right next to him and a bag. and we thought there was probably an explosive device with the detonator. turned out it calm from somewhere else. i don't know if it was a smoke alarm or what. but fortunately that turned out not to be the case. >> pelley: so the gun pln had no explosives. >> to the best of my knowledge at this point he did not have explosives. >> pelley: mr. mayor, the whole nation has you in its heart. and i appreciate you taking the time to speak about it. >> thank you. pray for our citizens. >> pelley: we will, thank you, sir. >> the president also asked america to pray today. he asked the citizens of the united states o pray for the victims, to pray for the families and to help the families bear what the president described as the unbearable. julianna goldman has more on this. >> at the white house and at

government buildings today, flags were lowered to half-staff. an order from president obama who declared the orlando massacre an act of terror and hate. >> this is a sober reminder that attacks on any americans regardless of race, ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation is an attack on all of us. and no act of hate or terror will ever change who we are or the values that make us americans. >> reporter: the worst mass shooting in u.s. history immediately re-ignited heated political debates over terrorism and gun control. presumptive republican nominee donald trump reiterated his call to ban muslims from entering the u.s. even though omar mateen was born in new york. and in a statement, trump criticized the president saying he disgracefully refused to even said words radical islam. for that reason alone, he should step down. if hillary clinton after this attack still cannot say the two words radical islam, she should

get out of this race for the presidency. neither obama or clinton were ready to link the attack to islamic extremism in her statement clinton said we need to redouble our efforts to defend our country from threats at home and abroad. and she told the lgbt community that we will keep fighting for your right to live freely, openly and without fear, republican senator jeff-- said in this case there doesn't need to be an either/or with terrorism or guns. >> i think that debate can and should go on as well as the debate on how to best protect us against those who are inspired or funded or directed by international terrorists. >> the administration appears to be putting politics on hold, scott. the white house announced president obama will not be campaigning with hillry clinton this coming week and vice president joe bierden cancelled an appearance at i miami fundraiser for tonight. >> our jeult anna goldman reporting. we are having some signal trouble out of orlando but we will return to scott pelley there as soon as that signal

becomes available. mean time so many people wanted to donate blood, the local blood bank had to turn people away. david begnaud is following this, david? rd good evening, one of the reasons are you having trouble with the signal here in orlando is because it started to rain. but i want to shoi the people who are still here while it's raining. folks who have been standing in line for more than 11 hours. when the call went out this morning it said urgent, we need blood, o negative, o positive and ab plasma and these people with ument brelas moving to the front door have been here since the call went out this morning. they showed up thinking what can we do this is the only thing we can do. there was one moment today that was a bit controversial. there were gay men who showed up. since this directly affected the gay comeumentd they wanted to give back. they were told they could not and turned away. that is because the fda long had a regulation which said gay men could not donate flood but the fda has changed that regulation. the company where we are tonight is still updating their policies

and procedures and so they were not ready to receive the donations from the gay men. and that is why those gay men were turned away. but that has not stopped the dream of-- stream of people outside the building. we're told nearly 3,000 to 3500 people have stood here and elsewhere across the state of florida and the urge continues tonight, at least the request for more blood. scott, anyone over the next 48 hours can give bloods and we're told that within 24 hours of testing that blood, it can be given to one of the victims. given to one of the victims. david bawg gnawed to grow up. given to one of the victims. david bawg gnawed but teachers like mr. elliot saw something in me. made a connection with me. now i'm a teacher myself, right here in camden. i'm just passing it along to my own students and making those same connections my teachers made with me. now that's some beautiful music.

i'm jamal dickerson, and i'm proud to be a new jersey educator.

>> pelley: this morning a man was arrested in california. he was helply armed and he told officers that he was on his way to the gay pride parade in west hollywood.

correspondent mir a ya villarreal has more. >> reporter: santa monica police are working along side the fb, looking too the motive of james howell of indiana, a man arrested close to the l.a. pride parade routed early sunday morning. in his car, they found an arsenal. lieutenant rodriguez. >> officers were immediately noticed that there was a rifle in the seat of the car which lead to a further investigation. at which point we recovered additional fire arms, high capacity magazines, officers did find some chemicals that could have been used for an improvised explosive device. the suspect did make an initial statement to the effect that he was going to go to the pride festival. beyond that he did not make any additional statements saying he was go fog do anything further than that. >> as we march in the streets today under gray skies and as we take a moment of silence to grieve together before the parade begins, our hearts will be heavy but our resolve will be

strong. >> reporter: today the start paft raid took a somber tone as officers lined the streets of west hollywood. >> at this time we just want the parade to go on. there is no known threat. >> reporter: laurel is among those who are fearful after seeing what happened in orlando. >> i mean obviously what he did was try to instill fear into our community. and so i think a lot of it was coming out here to support, to say that we're still strong. we're here to support the people that lost their lives last night and their families as well. and to show them we are not going to stop what we are doing. >> the parade has wrapped up here in west hollywood with no major incidents, while law enforcement does not believe james howell had any connection to the orlando shooting, they are not ruling anything out until they solid fie his motives. >> pelley: mir a

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>> pelley: the standoff here in orlando ended today a little after 5 sc 30 in the morning eastern time. when the orlando police swat team used stun grenades and an armoured vehicle to smash into the building and engage the gunman in a gun fight. we have just received some audio of that. let's have a listen.

>> oh my god. >> part of the sound of the gunfire that ended this terrible seige here in orlando, florida. the tony award ceremony will go on this evening. it will be aired on cbs. that is in new york tonight. but the producers have decided to dedicate the award ceremony to the victims and the families here in orlando. in a statement the producer said our hearts are heavy for the unimaginable tragedy that happened last night in orlando. our thoughts are with the families and friending of those effected. we'll bring you up to date on

>> pelley: here in orlando they are beginning to remove the 50 bodies from the pulse nightclub just over there behind me, over my left shoulder. the mayor has told us that they hope to have all-of-the bodies removed to the coroner's office by this evening. at least 50 people have dpied, more than 50 others were

wounded. many of them critically. the club was about to close when the shooting started. the gunman is identified as omar mateen born in the united states to afghan parents. he was a security guard by training and bought two guns in recent days including the ar-15 semiautomatic rifle that was responsible for the carnage in the club. during the attack he actually called 911 and pledged his allegiance to the terrorist group isis, though it is not clear if he had any direct contact with that group. mateen was killed in the shootout with police around 5 a.m. that concludes our special edition of the cbs weekend news. tomorrow cbs news coverage will continue as cbs this morning originates from orlando. and we

captioning funded by cbs and ford. we go further, so you can. >> pelley: good evening. i'm scott pelley, and we begin this edition of "60 minutes" with an update on the deadliest mass shooting in american history. at least 50 people are dead and more than 50 have been wounded, many of them critically, after a gunman opened fire in a gay bar called the pulse here in orlando, florida. the man, identified as 29-year-old omar mateen of fort pierce, florida, a u.s. citizen, was killed in a shoot-out with police. isis has claimed responsibility. president obama called it an act of terrorism and hate. >> as americans we are united ii grief, in outrage, and in resolve to defend our people