you're here donating not blood but platelets today. what do you hope to do with your donation? >> every time i donate i like to help someone. always help someone in a sad time we're going through to help assistance for those that need it. >> and when you heard the news, was it last night this morning? >> this morning. waking up to it. >> what went through your head. >> not saying another 9/11 but it hit local, it's here, right around the corner, it doesn't feel right and i'm sad for those who had to suffer. >> but seeing this response has been so powerful. >> it's nice to have everybody come together and help out. >> mike, thank you very much for your time. brian, that's what we have. we're in a very busy blood center. if you want to donate blood it's one pint every eight weeks. back to you. >> jo ling kent exclusively in

las vegas where certainly as we entered the morning the need was so, so great. here's what we're looking at, the numbers at the bottom of the screen. these are as of the last update we had earlier today we are cautioning they could change. 58 dead, over 500 people wounded in the scene we've been replaying all day. the pictures that started coming out of las vegas late last night. ? that something awful happened. the video when people first heard it it didn't seam real because it seemed like the sound track of a war movie and nothing we would see along the trip but it happened.

this is on the southern end not far from mccarron airport next to the mere mid-the luxor. mandalay bay is also the home to two hotels, people wanting to stay at the four seasons in las vegas enter through the mandalay bay, it's contained in their building, uses separate. >> that's right, we made our way to the mandalay bay on the 19th floor, this is cindy and steve mcafee. cindy was down there with her sister jamie and their friend dayle who is a retired firefighter from the city of los angeles. i want to start with steve who during this entire incident was on the 32nd floor, the same floor as the had soar. steve tell us -- i know this is a crazy time but your phone is ringing, people are looking for

you, what did you hear to hear those rounds go off on the same floor? >> it was super loud going off and off and then it would stop and go again and stop and go again help the the lights came on and you could see people scattering and running and my wife calls me on the phone and i was directing her where to run. >> so cindy was down there last night. you were at the concert. you could see the concert from the same floor just rooms away from where the shooter was carrying out his attack. you guys spoke by phone, what did you say? >> she was freaking out, i was trying to calm her down and i could hear this going off and i was trying to tell her when they're shooting stop and when they stop shooting run and i was telling they are police are over here, go that direction. then they were like they're chasing us and i was like there's no one in the venue. they were not going in the venue they were just staying around

the perimeter. >> we're talking about hundreds if not thousands of rounds of ammunition that went off doors away from where you were. what does that sound like from close proximity? >> i thought it was part of the show until i walked over to the window and never saw anything going on at the show. it was pitch black so i figured it was something happening at the show i would see. then the lights went on and people scattered scattering. >> cindy, you called steve, what did you say on the telephone? >> i was very upset. i told him somebody is shooting. there is -- there has to be more than one shooter. it felt like the gun schotts were following us wherever we went we felt like they were following us. my sister and i would get behind a wall, they'd stop and start and it felt like the echo. it was the echo that made us feel they were following us. >> they made their way to the cesar's palace private hangar with a bunch of people.

how many people were in there standing there and it became your place of refuge? >> there were about 70 of us in the hangar and at that point we had all -- we knew we were safe. right before that we were at the fuel docking station for the private planes and we thought people were still following us. . . everybody in there was mortally afraid. >> dale, you were down there. he has blood on his shorts still today. you haven't been able to change your clothes. you treated someone or several people when you were down there. describe the scene. >> we were in a group on the right side of the stage which was the right in the wide open. we could see the hotel glass and my family hit the ground. i had 20 people with us. a couple got hit and once the lights came on everybody got scattered. my family was dispersed but luckily in the minutes that i

found my son, my son had about five -- he had collected belts. my son is a firefighter also. >> did you use them as tourniquets? >> yes, we started putting things on. we kept making our way out. there was an off duty fireman there and cops and military guys helping drag people that were already hit. >> the big fire department in the city of las vegas, you're recently retired from there. have you ever seen anything like this? >> nothing like it. 34 years on the job, this was by far the most horrific thing i've ever seen and i've been through the earthquakes and all that. but yeah. the. all we did was triage, there was about 25 people we had to pronounce right there. not pronounce but in triage leave them alone so it was pretty stressful. >> just to hear stories like this from dale and jamie and

cindy and steve in the lobby, everybody has a story on the way up to this floor we heard from somebody who said they took a bullet in the head and they saved our lives, over the next several days, hours, weeks to come, we'll hear these stories. from the mandalay bay, we'll send it back to you. >> what incredible stories. there are first responders across this country who will never see or treat a gunshot wound in the course of their careers over decades and think of what everyone has seen there and in the case of those inside the hotel heard. jacob, thank you for telling their stories. we are joined by a democratic congressman of the state of nevada. congressman, i want to give you an opportunity to give us a

situation report on las vegas. is the city going to be okay and what kind of a city do you see going forward after recovery? >> thank you so much for having me on your show. first and foremost i want to say my thoughts and prayers are with every single victim and their family members. i spent several hours today at the hospital visiting victims and family members. i've never seen anything like this. every single doctor was on hand, every nurse, nurse assistant, police officers, firefighters, paramedics. i want to say thank you to all of them for working tirelessly. this is a tragic day not only for our city and state but also our country and it's sad in my

own city we're seeing the deadliest mass shooting in american history. but i know that our city is strong. this is going to make us stronger and we'll move forward learn from this and become a better country because of it. >> the other sad part is the city of las vegas has worked so hard and tried so hard to become a destination resort for every had been of the family. lord knows there's plenty for adults in las vegas but the message has been for the last decade or two that this is a place for all and bring the kids when you do they have worked hard on outdoor spaces. last night was a terrific event that brought people from other countries and the great sadness

is now this. >> that's right. and look unfortunately this one incident will hurt our reputation here as a city but i know that in the last 40, 50 years, las vegas has been the entertainment capital of the world. it's been a safe place for people to visit and we encourage people to come and visit our beautiful city. we won't let one bad actor ruin nevada's reputation, the city of las vegas is ril yept, we're strong. we'll get through this and be the strong and safety we've always been. >> las vegas has never closed, congressman ruben kihuen, democrat of the state of nevada. everyone should remember las vegas never closes and certainly not now. the recovery effort begins very shortly. congressman thank you very much.

let's talk about law enforcement and security angle of all of this with two guests who were kind enough to join us earlier in the day, bill bratton is back with us, former commissioner of the nypd, now an nbc news senior law enforcement counterterrorism analyst. clint watts, nbc news national security analyst and a former fbi special agent with the joint terrorism task force. gentlemen, welcome back. what have you picked up about this case that interests you. what have you learned about this guy, the guy his brother calls "just a guy" to mass murderer? >> well, i think just a guy fits the description of this individual. we have learned nothing, i don't believe, that makes him anything other than just a guy other than he is now, the worst mass murderer in our country's

history. there were hundreds of off duty law enforcement officers attending that concert with their families. the child of one is in critical condition in one of those hospitals. another officer was shot in the nee so we heard stories about the assistance people were receiving. the fact there were so many police officers in that crowd may have been an extraordinary coincidence that was beneficial to what happened. >> the kind of stories we will learn later. >> exactly. >> of great heroism. i guess if it's an unremarkable guy, it's going to be hard for him to set off any bells or becausers or alarms when he checks in to a 32nd floor hotel suite that he asks overlook the

concert venue. >> yeah, if you look at his age it's not typical what we would expect for a mass shooting like this. >> 64-year-old white male. >> even his income level and professional background, seems like he was financially fine. >> has a pilot's license apparently. >> fully capable. lived in multiple states. that he has a weapon is not unique, either. this is nevada where pretty much anyone can buy a weapon at any time and then you look at the location, this is las vegas. there's no place in the world that maybe has more technical surveillance on it and he didn't exhibit any of the behavioral indicators you might look for so if there is anything i've learned before, this is something i haven't seen before. this is a unique situation. >> commissioner what do you think an afteraction report will change how las vegas welcomes

tourists and has outdoor events? >>. >> the reality is las vegas remains an extraordinarily safe location. it was their misfortune our country's misfortune and certainly those killed in this event that it just happened to have happen in vegas. they will recover and appropriately so going forward because as we saw their response capabilities were phenomenal respond to this catastrophic event. in terms of the learning, there will be a lot coming out of this. law enforcement around the country will see to meet with the sheriff and his people. the corporate security world down there will seek to see other things they might be doing differently that see something say something, the reinforcement of that, anything that might be out of the ordinary among our guests, among our employees, for example.

there's always something to learn out of these tragedies. >> let me ask you an uncomfortable question for the family of four that has a vacation trip to las vegas upcoming. how should they feel? >> the concern naturally would be the awe at the moment down. there this is something for a period of days much as occurred in boston after the marathon bombing, a pal will settle over that city for a period of time but it will lift and the gentleman that just spoke talked about las vegas is strong like boston strong. boston came back and used this horrific incident they had as a -- in the sense a platform to come back. vegas is very resilient and it will come back but in terms of people not going there now other than just the aura for the time being of the this president visiting on wednesday very much in the news for the next number of days that there's really

nothing we'll remind them out of the hotel. >> not that you're in the business of criticizing the white house, but is it a great idea in the city where multiple shifts will be worked, this last 24 hours certainly on in tomorrow to host the president of the united states listeneding we presume at mccarron airport within view of mandalay bay, any concerns? >> i think it puts a tax and strain on the system there and i'm not so concerned with that because if any city can handle it, it would be las vegas. but does this turn into a political situation that law enforcement investigators have to deal with? that would be the concern i hope they didn't have to deal with. we've seen a consistent pattern that these incidents can become political footballs and i hope everybody can stay focus on tracking down why this incident happened and how we can do things better. >> gentlemen, thank you both.

tough topic today. tough thing to have to cover throughout the day as well. web ear going to bring in democratic senator richard blumenthal of connecticut and as we do we should say we heard from sarah huckabee sanders, we'll play that and talk to the senator on the other side. >> this is an unspeakable tragedy. there's a time and place for a political debate but now is the time to unite as a country. there's currently an open and ongoing law enforcement investigation, a motive has yet to be determined and it would be premature for us to discuss policy when we don't fully know the facts or what took place last night. >> so you heard what was said from the podium, senator, as we welcome you on the broadcast.

you happen to believe this is the time to have this discussion? >>. >> the president called what happened in las vegas pure evil. if he believes it was pure evil, now is the time to lead. we saw this evil in newtown just a few years ago, nothing has changed since newtown. congress has been complicit. we ought to honor the victims by acting and our condolences, hearts, prayers, grief, go out to the families and i saw those images and i've seen them all day in horror the unspeakable tragedy we remember too well but we ought to be angry. i'm furious that congress has been complicit. now is the time for action. >> why don't we act? what is the problem? what was it about first graders losing their lives that wasn't sad enough to result in

stranglehold of the nra on the congressional process has undermined our efforts, in fact, blocked them but i believe we can honor these victims and arrive at a tipping point where we change. america will feel the same fury that i felt watching these images. >> what is your understanding of the argument? what about the effort to legalize silencers in some cases. what's your understanding of that argument. >> the argument for silencers? >> for legalizing the use of silencers on weapons? >> making the purchase or use of silencers easier is supposed to be good for the ears of the folks who are shooting.

what a travesty you think the reason those folks ran from those gunshots is they could hear them. this legislation ought to be a non-starter like the concealed carry legislation, what a travesty and a tragedy that the supposed reforms that congress is considering now are the silencer legislation and concealed carry proposal. we ought to have a step to ban gun violence including a ban on assault weapons and the high-capacity magazines used for these mass killings. assault weapons have no purpose but to maim and kill human beings, they're weapons of war and, of course, background checks for everyone who buys a gun to keep them out of the hands of the american people. >> when do you think the american people will have had enough to push back against the edges of the second amendment

arg argument enough to say we can live under the second amendment but there should be limits? >> i'm a law enforcer. i believe in the second amendment because it's the law of the land but those common sense measures would in no way infringe on any constitutional right and the vast majority believe we ought to have background checks to keep these weapons out of the hands of dangerous people. i believe that we're reaching a tipping point but remember also between the time that ronald reagan was almost assassinated and the brady law there were ten years so it's a marathon now a sprint and we have to be in it for the long haul. the courage and strength of the newtown families and the families in las vegas and orlando will inspire america along with the horror of this unspeakable tragedy.

>> connecticut senator richard blumenthal, thank you for joining our coverage. >> thank you. >> to our audience, we remind you the senator was talking to us from the u.s. capitol where a few hours ago by order of the president flags on federal facilities were lowered to half-staff nationwide and around the world. our continuous coverage will resume right after we fit in a short break. people would ask me in different countries that we traveled, what is your nationality and i would always answer hispanic. so when i got my ancestry dna results it was a shocker. i'm everything. i'm from all nations. i would look at forms now and wonder what do i mark? because i'm everything. and i marked other. discover the story only your dna can tell. order your kit now at ancestrydna.com.

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>> we thought the speakers were having -- malfunctioning but once the lights turned off and jason aldean disappeared we knew something was wrong. we dropped and started running. >> absolute chaos. whoever the shooter was was just spraying the crowd. i mean, you just saw people dropping left and right. >> i didn't see a person but they were shooting towards the concert area and i don't know if they were -- they looked to be going higher than that not done but that was probably 200, 300 rounds and interspersed in between while maybe reloading or something there was interior gunfire, too. >> there were so many people running and so many directions and it was so scary that my wife and i got separated. >> the reward for those who survived what happened last night will be anxiety psychological damage no doubt

and they're just looking back to see what they've survived. we've put together computer animation to show you the layout. there's the mandalay bay at the southern end of las vegas. 32nd floor is the suite he rented. we zoom down. across the street is the luxor pyramid hotel. there was the venue laid out in full view of those two windows we saw busted out of the 32nd floor corner suite in the mandalay bay. chris jansing is down at the south end of the city of las vegas with the mandalay bay in the background. chris, take it from there. >> you can only imagine the terror and i was thinking when i heard one of the first witnesses very early this morning echoes of what happened when steve scalise was shot in virginia that the congressman didn't know where the shots were coming from. that was the case 2.

2,000 people came to the harvest festival, 58 of them were killed, 515 injured and will bear the physical scars, far more of them the psychological scars as you mentioned. two of the people who were there as they have been every single year for the harvest festival joe and valerie yankis from connecticut. i thank you very much for being with us. i know you haven't slept. i know this was something that was special to you every year. you came adds a celebration of your anniversary. >> i thought it was fireworks. we couldn't fathom was what the sound was other than fireworks. >> so you came out to see? >> i do not. >> you came out to see? >> i went with another one of the personnel we met there.

she wanted to go see it and i was following her out because i said he's done it previous before at the same concert, he's done pyrotechnics, it's probably just jason aldean doing his show so she walked out and as soon as she walked out i was right behind her and she turn around immediately and ran towards me and said "run, it's gunfire." >> what did you do? >> first thing i thought was that we weren't going out of the front of the tent. i lifted it up and had everybody get underneath. i didn't know, i was trying to figure out if it was a siege or -- there was a bunch of people on the ground so we were just trying to find a spot that would be more protect iive. we found a tractor-trailer in the back after we knocked down a couple fences, there was a group of us and i figured underneath for the trailer for that time being was a good spot to shove my wife. she got under there, there was a few people under there, we just

waited but the shots kept com g coming. it was on going for well over ten minutes in one clip there has to be 30 or 40 rounds going off. >> you sid aid he remembers mor than you. were you in a state of shock? >> he kept saying "go, go." i didn't know where to go. you could hear it hitting the metal of the stage. >> you have a blog called hello country usa, you got media passes. >> thank god. >> saved our lives. >> why? >> because up until the last day we were ready to take off for vacation we were notified we had the passes from route 91 and live nation which we're thankful

for. that put us more out of direct harm's way. our friends we come with, we get here early and get on the stage, we get good shots for our twitter blog and we would have been right there. our friends were able to duck and cover and run and they were dodging bull lettets on the way and they made it out fine. >> what goes through your mind if you didn't get those passes? >> i don't want to think of it. we have hour in children. my husband doesn't get around very well so how he got me out of there and himself after that i don't know. >> how did you get her out of there. you have scratches on your arms, scratches up here. when did you decide you were going to run. >> we were waiting under the tractor-trailer and i figured

that was the best cover but i was trying to listen to see what was going on and as the rapid fire was continuing i figured it's time to get out of there. there were a couple young guys that were a great help. and i don't know if it was one of those situations where you were going to have guys on the ground with tactical gear on coming around the corner and. >> you said he pushed you? >> i couldn't get up and he pushed me up and over and i got hung up and all i could think of is how do i get him over with the brace? he had a backpack with him too and i didn't want to leave anywhere. >> we are glad you're okay joe and valerie yankis. >> i'm sorry for the others. >> we appreciate your taking the time. we are sorry for the victims and we were again, brian, talking in the break and they're from

connecticut, a small town in connecticut, newtown, very personal to them. they were four children, the youngest is 21 who was supposed to be well w them. one of the many stories we have been hearing of people who just feel so lucky to be alive brian. >> terrific couple, harrowing story. i had the pleasure of talking to him earlier by telephone, unbelievable. to your point they go home to their lives in connecticut leaving behind a city that will be forever changed. chris jansing, thank you so much. we've been told correspondent tom costello in washington has more on the weapons that were used in the shooting and that may not include all of the webs in the room, correct, tom? >> this is a very confusing picture. there are report there is may have been as many as 19 weapons inside this hotel room. what we can tell you is they

involved ammunition, tripods for sniper rifles and what we think were probably two 23 caliber and a 308 caliber semiautomatic weapon. now here's what's interesting about that ch. the laws about semiautomatic weapons and automatic weapons are confusing even for the experts but the bottom line is that a semiautomatic weapon is technically legal under federal law, yes, legal in las vegas in nova scotia. states will regulate semiautomatic weapons. now if you convert a semiautomatic into a fully automatic weapon, a machine gun, that is illegal. but here comes the tricky part. exactly how much of it are you converting? is it fully automatic or just a little fully automatic and what are the tools? the kits you're using to create that? to make it more fully automatic? if that sounds confusing i've spend all day with atf experts

who say it is confusing and there are loopholes that make it confusing. so we don't know if there was a legally converted semiautomatic into an automatic weapon, whether that was illegal or legal. it doesn't matter if you are on the receiving ended of the weapon being fired at you because for all intent and purposes, according to the experts, they were certainly in the line of automatic weapons fire whether the weapon was in full automatic mode or not, it has the ability to slice through that police officer's vest, slice through that body and keep going on to somebody else. they are lethal and accurate at that very far distance so we expect to learn more about what the weaponry was in the coming hours.

one last note. that is that the registry itself, the database on weapos,s congress has been reluctant to want to create a computerized government database on weapons so the atf has a card file and micro film so if you want to trace a weapon you have to go through this very exhaustive search inside a west virginia warehouse and look for the card file, the paperwork on a particular gun and sometimes it's on micro film and as you would imagine that can take forever with 300 million guns in the country right now. brian? >> tom, while they're not preparing for trial, they're not gathering evidence for trial because the shooter is dead, they'll want to find as many of those shell casings and rounds, and we're talking about thousands, probably, thousands of rounds many having ricocheted, embedded in the ground, embedded in structures,

cars. this field, his field of vision from that 32nd floor is unbelieveable. >> yeah, and they have to do a full forensics accounting of everything because they have to close all of the data points. they need to understand fully what happened here. and that struck me i will tell you, brian, we've been on the air here since early morning hours and i thought my gosh, that's such a long distance to shoot, to spray the crowd from but he had very powerful weapons and he wasn't necessarily trying to take aim at a particular person, he was just spraying the crowd and at that distance if you're just spraying the crowd you can be very deadly. i will also tell you nbc news has talked to two gun shops in nevada. both confirmed they did sell weapons legally to the suspect. others didn't want to comment.

>> i've just been handed new reporting by the associated press which i want to share with you though we have not matched this report iing at msnbc and n news. the brother of the shooting said see the f stephen craig paddock was a big spender at the casinos and often received free meals and rooms. his brother said he never showed signs he could be violent and owned several guns but never collected firearms. he described the wealth of his multimillionaire now dead brother as substantial. said it included real estate and that he managed property for relatives. eric paddock also described his brother as different from other people. "he was a guy who had money. he went on cruises and gambled." he said "stephen craig paddock did not care about religion or politics." the associated press has been doing a full court press of

coverage on this story. one of their reporters, sally ho of the a.p. in las vegas has been with us and sally, let's talk logistics. it's interesting because this comes on the heels of all of our reporting about the natural disasters that americans are dealing with right now. this is very much man made, very much finite in that we know there's a specific pool of people who came to the event but as this story dawned this morning, there were people who were not connected with family members, they were friends trying to get in touch with friends. are they, god forbid, on the list of the dead or wounded? i know you've been looking into some of those challenges. >> yeah, and certainly that's the work that we have now. we knew pretty early on that he had killed himself and that the threat as the sheriff's said is contained so the work they've

been doing is trying to figure out who are among the dead and that number is at 58. not all of them have been identified and then separately you have over 500 people who are in hospitals all across southern nevada and people who haven't heard from their families or friends at this point might be incapacitated in hospital or dead out in this field. we don't know. and that's part of the work that is awaiting the sheriff's office and coroner's office and that work is to be done and it will go throughout the night. >> it's become a way too familiar feature of a news conference when we have suffered a mass casualty event but on your screen right now there is always a number to call and they give this number out for people searching for family, friends, loved ones. there is the number for those who haven't heard from someone

they knew to be in las vegas. for those who would like to locate and make contact with a loved up with in las vegas. sally, how many hospitals in all have been treating the wounded out of this one incident? >> we know of five. we know of all the people that have gone, both the ones who have deceased at the hospital and also the ones dealing with not just gunshot wounds but people reportedly getting trampled, people getting hit by shrapnel. i heard from one guy who said people were tearing down the fence to get out because at that point they just didn't know where to go, what to do. it was chaos at that point and not really sure what they should do and laser focused on getting out of there but this site where this is, it isn't exactly like

you can run into the walgreens and take cover, there's not much around it so we've heard of people ending up in -- by mccarron airport. one guy told me he ran two miles with his girlfriend hand in hand just sprinting away from the scene and, you know, eventually getting enough phone service that he could call a lyft driver to take him home to suburban henderson. so that's what we're dealing with, people just really survival mode running away from the noise and the people and try to save themselves and a common thread that we've heard from people among the dozens of people that the epa has talked to is they all say i don't know how i survived because as has been reported, this guy seemed to be spraying indiscriminately and sounds like pure luck when

you survived or not, whether you ended up just dropping dead in the middle of a concert. >> and that's going to be the real challenge for those who survive this. you may have gotten out of this okay but did you get out of this okay? the psychological issues that people are going to face, say nothing of these death toll and wounded numbers that we've seen all day out of las vegas. we'll be following your coverage sally ho of the associated press, thank you for being our guest this afternoon. >> thank you. another break for our coverage. we'll be back with more from las vegas right after this. in the future, a nation's technology will determine its power. in its economy, in medicine, in science and in national security. one company designs and builds

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let's go back to las vegas

and correspondent steve patterson who's been one of our go-to guys since arriving there this morning. steve, one thing we are happy to note? that to a person all those who have been able to speak to us on live television or the telephone are talking about the first responders and something you talked about, the spirit there of people trying to grab up survivors, trying to stuff people in their cars and drive away trying to protect other people because they were in the line of fire. >> we've heard so more stories and we're thankful and able to talk to people who survived this and are able to come out and talk about it. there are heroes and some are unsung. we heard stories about people shepherding those that were involved in that deadly shooting

as they took them into their rooms and sheltered them in place, took cars and drove people out of that scene and out of danger. so there's plenty of stories. so there are those heartbreaking stories, i have to tell you being on the strip all night long, all morning long, as the sun has risen the resiliency of las vegas has come up and shown. if you go far enough north on the strip it feels like at times you almost wonder if there was a shooting at all. you don't want to put that into perspective but to think that if you go far enough in the same city it's business as usual, the casinos are open. people are out and smiling and happy. as you come further south it's in stark relief. it's a more somber tone. there are people milling about but they're sort of taking a little picture and respectfully moving on and then as you move

into that scene, the mandalay bay which is beyond me behind a police blockade, we got reporting from the associated press that crews on scene are still removing bodies. and obviously o lly you have ho heart break. but those survivor stories we're so happy to hear. it means the resiliency and spirit of people in las vegas is alive and well. >> steve patterson thank you so much for your coverage just now and throughout the day we really appreciate it. we're joined by someone who became a friend and contributor of ours during political season especially, always an expert on nevada, always an expert on las vegas so we won't be talking about voting patterns as much as john rawlston's town. john is an msnbc analyst. john, what has this done to las

vegas that sense of public trust that we were supposed to believe in and grow up with. most of us were fortunate to grow up with it and how do you think this town will be changed? >> i will be changed? >> i think it will be changed forever. i don't think there's any doubt about it. i've been thinking today, i'm numb, live here, kid was going to go to concert with his girlfriend, couldn't get tickets, desperately called radio stations for tickets and ended up thank god not able to get in. so many stories like that today. but also thinking, when i used to do a tv program, since 9/11, talked to law enforcement people talked about las vegas where you have often new year's eve or concert like this, great accumulation of people in one place, ripe for mad man or terrorist attack to occur.

these conversations that took place on television and off camera keep ringing in my head. what will be the reaction to that? one thing mentioned a lot, including by steve patterson, the response of the first responders. talked to chairman of the commission that oversees the strip, he was there since midnight. without the first responders and how they reacted on the strip last night, hundreds more people would have been killed. some of us, we sit here in comfortable studios and don't think about how these people are running into danger and saving all these lives. my reporters have been out talking to these folks, eight stories now up on the nevada independent site. six reporters doing that job and hearing the same thing from elected officials and regular people. that's what i'm thinking about. >> another one for you, bill

bratton from nypd was here. he has learned there were a large number of california police officers in the crowd off-duty with their families and his belief is that a lot of these stories of heroism, people just amazed they were able to get through the crowd and to safety are going to turn out to be many of them law enforcement officers who just didn't look the part and were guests like everybody else. >> chairman of the clark county commission steve cis lee yak told me about the california police officers and off-duty officers from las vegas too, some of whom injured by shooter. they followed instincts, tried to get people to safety. one of the scariest thing, guy in 32nd floor of casino hotel

shooting down into shooting ducks, almost no place for anybody to hide the way the concert was set up. people that got people out of harm's way or helped people who had been shot incredible heroism. >> this is the stuff of a war movie, don't see in urban area in western nation. as much as we mourn the dead and cheer for recovery of the wounded, we also are concerned for those who survived. because some of them are going to have a real tough time. they have witnessed hell on earth. >> you know, it's interesting you say that brian. before i came on the air here with you, ran into congressman key wan, who was on the air earlier, got to the scene late, about 2:00 in the morning and described this horrific scene and could see how shaken he was, going to hospital to see bodies

all over the place and people dying in front of him. you don't forget that. family members will never forget what they saw, friends will never forget what they saw and urban environment, it's more like a war scene, a war movie, something you don't think is real until it touches you in your own community. >> you're a dad, i'm a dad, think of bringing young kids, again on otherwise nice night, to see a concert. and as they say, you can't unsee, you can't erase the mark that witnessing that much carnage is going to leave on anyone, to say nothing of little kids. >> it's absolutely right. in fact, i talked to my son, who is now 22 years old. he had friends there, hasn't been able to get in touch with. and there were a lot of young folk there's. brian, you and i think of 22 years old, still a kid to me. that's a kid.

listen i'm shaken by the fact he was almost there. he's wondering why i'm not wherever he is right now giving him a hug. people are shaken by this, whole town will be shaken. also see the best of humanity, not just first responders but chairman of the clark county commission and sheriff set up a gofundme account trying to raise $2 million, set up a few hours ago, already well over $1 million that people have contributed. people rise to the occasion and you've shown the lines of people lining up to donate blood. people have cynical view of las vegas, think it's another world, weird sin city where no one good lives. community is showing we're a real place with real people like any other people in america. >> real town with people that make it go, beating heart of the

center. someday go back to talking about politics because won't be a clear and present danger to talk about the hurt in your town but tell everyone we're looking out for you, thinking about you. another break for us, we'll be right back. shawn evans: it's 6 am. 40 million americans are waking up to a gillette shave. and at our factory in boston, 1,200 workers are starting their day building on over a hundred years of heritage, craftsmanship and innovation. today we're bringing you america's number one shave at lower prices every day. putting money back in the

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we are moments away from the next briefing from public officials in las vegas where of course the main thing to fear is any change in the already gruesome numbers, the toll of

the dead and those wounded in this huge, mass casualty incident. our coverage will continue as we learn more from the mayor of las vegas, the sheriff in las vegas, both expected at that briefing. ari melber will take over the next leg of the live continuing coverage. show you the scene in las vegas right now. awaiting the briefing. brian williams just mentioned. police will give investigative update and we'll bring it to you live. this is a city reeling from the largest mass murder in modern american history. questions at this hour, what motivated this now dead killer stephen paddock? authorities want to know what moved him to do what he did, if he had help and how he pulled off mass murder after decades of