in the course of that night. >> i couldn't believe that i had a sun like this. >> we're working together. this is about unity. this is about bringing the great city of orlando back together. >> the deadliest shooting in u.s. history as we start to learn more about the victims and the gunman, the nation is coming together. >> we are hearing how in moments of chaos, heros helped hundreds escape. we want to begin our coverage at the live desk with more on what investigators are now revealing. >> all of the victims have now on identified.

investigators releasing that new information this morning. they have not put out the names of all 49 people who were killed because they're still in the process of notifying next of kin. one victim was just 19 years old. the oldest was 50 so far. they have now removed all of the bodies from inside the pulse nightclub. orlando's mayor says he believes the tragedy could have been even worse. >> opd and the other law enforcement agencies responded hero heroically, breaching the wall, killing the bad guy and rescuing dozens of hostages. >> reporter: those who died in the attack included a pharmacy technician and a man whose family says they only learned he was gay few months

the shooter one of its soldiers. >> former coworkers reported mateen to the fbi twice because of comments that he made about radical islamic propaganda. they also describe him as toxic and racist. mateen's father says the sight of a same-sex couple kissing in front of his family recently set him off. >> they searched the condo in fort pierce, florida last night over concerns his condo koifb rigg -- could have been rigged with explosives. >> i don't approve this. in the united states, anyone has the freedom and the choice to run his life how he likes to run his life and nobody has the right to do anything. so i don't approve of

mateen speaking to nbc's kerry sanders about his son carrying out the attack in orlando. he said he was shocked when he learned what happened. he also says he shares the pain that the family of the victims are going through. we'll have more on that interview a little later in the show. >> now to the woman who may know the killer best, his ex-wife. >> ms. yusufiy calls mateen a sick person. >> he was mentally unstable and mentally ill. >> it's been nearly a decade since yusufiy says she's communicated with mateen or his family. they were only together about foyer mon four months before she filed for divorce. >> everything that i understand for to not have that more than anything, i was so, so deeply

people who lost their loved ones and the families that are now suffering. the people that are wounded, that are healing. >> nbc news has not independently confirmed that mateen had any kind of mental disorder. back at the live desk, lawmakers are already starting to push for gun control. right now, senator bob casey in pennsylvania is holding a news conference. he says his legislation would ban anyone convicted of a hate crime from owning a gun. he says congress should take action immediately and to pass the bill and other common sense guidelines. at the live desk, tisha thompson. we've got low humidity, lots of sunshine. live view, just a few

clouds passing over the region. beautiful day on the bay with the blue waters and light breeze. out of the mountains where it was in the 40s and 50s this morning. it's well into the 60s and near 70 there. the hour-by-hour forecast. we'll be in the mid-70s by 1:00. by 7:00 into the upper 70s. change is on the way and our next chances for rain coming up in a few minutes. back to orlando now where we're still checking in for the latest details on those three hours that saw crowds trapped inside the pulse nightclub. >> and what's happened in the painful, confusing hours since that shooting happened. we're live at the hospital where many of the injured were taken. what's the latest there? >> reporter: more than 24 hours after the deadliest shooting in

orlando stands united. many of those victims are recovering here in this hospital while families are still waiting to figure out if their loved ones died in that club there. today, we're learning more about the gunman and moments after the shooting, as we go to video now this morning. we learned more information about ail ll of this in a press conference. the 50'd person is the shooter. so far, they've only been able to contact about half of them. the 29-year-old shooter, omar mateen, pledged his allegiance to oois isis in a 911 call. this allowed officers to united states explosives to blow a hole in a wall and get many of those people out to safety. now, the community is coming together in shock trying to

with the aftermath. the mayor of orlando saying we will not be defined by the act of a cowardly hater. they did find a third gun in the shooter's car. he was came and cool while he called 911 during the shooting pledging allegiance to the isis. back to you. >> thank you, sarah. we're covering the tragic shooting all day, we're going to be covering it, even when we're not on the air. follow aaron gilchrist in orlando. we'll take to him over the phone in just a few minutes. he'll have reports coming up later as well. ♪ a powerful message and a healing nation. how neighbors are coming together in the wake of the deadliest mass shooting in the history of america.

>> i tried to wish i could still wake up from it. by i can't. >> i need to find my friend, that's all. >> they were beautiful people.

♪

we shall overcome. this was the message at this rally at the capitol that turned into a candle light vigil in front of the white house last night. people hugged, raised signs and lit candles. >> it was completely devastating. i woke up with the news. and to see people that are still fighting and still willing to stand up and not be afraid when things like this are happening, incredibly moving. >> the white house and government buildings around the country will fly at half-staff this week to honor the victims of the shooting. there are multiple vigils planned later this week. and the mother of one of the victims is describing her son's last moments. >> nina justice was asleep when her son eddie started sending her text messages. that text

their final conversation. >> he said mommy, i love you. in the club, they are shooting. that was at 2:06. trapped in the bathroom, downtown, please call police, i'm going to die. call them, mama, now. i'm in the bathroom. he's coming. i'm going to die. >> she described the next text where her son was trapped inside the bathroom with the gunman. >> i asked him was he hurt. he said yes. i said are some of the people hurt, he said yes. i said what bathroom are you in. he said the women bathroom. then he said hurry, he's in the bathroom with us. he's a terror. and then i asked him in the men bathroom. and he said, no. >> authorities confirmed late last night

justice was among those dead in the shooting. support for the victims of the orlando shooting can be seen across the country. the effor by the local red cross to help those in need. ♪ [ sirens ] >> i looked over and i saw bodies falling, people screaming. >> i thought i was going to die. like, i didn't know if i was

[ sirens ] >> in the face of hate and violence, we will love one another. >> i thought i was going to die. like, i didn't know if i was going to come out alive. >> you haven't heard from him? >> i've text him, i've called him. he's not answering the phone. >> you will not break us. we are better people than this. >> orlando! ♪ >> here in our area, there are opportunities for you to help out as well. >> several blood banks are accepting donations today on behalf of the victims. we're at a red cross location on e street in northwest washington with more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. in the wake of the shooting, people all around the country, as well as here locally, have been looking for ways tth

blood. we're here at the red cross donation center here on e street. you can see all of the chairs that are just waiting. they're having a blood drive later today. it's one of four happening this afternoon in our area. in orlando, something truly amazing. the call for blood went out and people responded in big numbers. you can see in the video, the long lines, hundreds of people going to a blood donation center. that line actually wrapped around the building. they actually had to stop and ask people to sign up for appointments over the next couple of days so that they could deal with all of the people coming to help out. there are four drives that are happening here in our area. win is taking place at e street where we are. also at the rockville donation center on park lawn drive alexandria chapter house. i'm joined by matt with the

talk a little bit about how people can donate today at one of these sites. >> so people that want to come over and give blood today can easily go to redcross.org/blood. you can easily put in your zip code. it will show you where you can go. this is additionally something that you can just drop in on. if you have time on your lunch break, the donation will take roughly about an hour or so. we're getting so much response here that it might be that you have to wait in line a little bit. so keep that in mind. >> reporter: there are some restrictions by the fda in terms of who can donate. people who've traveled to certain countries. also men who have had gay sex in the last year, they're being asked to defer doctor a year. if you've had a tattoo in a state where tattoo parlors are not regulated. if you go on our website, we ve

four different centers having donation drives later this afternoon. back to you in the studio. it's been close to 36 hours since the horror began inside an orlando nightclub. >> we now know that all 49 victims killed inside the pulse nightclub have been identified. news4's aaron gill crest is in orlando this morning. good morning, aaron. >> reporter: good morning to you. we -- we literally just walked out of the building. we've been moving around the city here. you mention the fact that people are trying to find ways to help out. we are at the gay community center here in orlando. i just stepped outside to talk to you. really just a crush of people in there right now, people looking for ways to help out. they've been trying to sign up volunteers here to go to some of the locations where law enforcement is gathering information, where families are gathering, hospitals where people are ng

family members are gathering at those stops. these volunteers have been dispatched to those locations. two, there's been a huge amount of donations that have come into the gay community center here. food and water and all sorts of things. that stiuff being pushed out to the first responders who are in need of those things. then there's been money. more than $1 million donated to a go fund me account set up yesterday, the civil rights organization here in florida. that money will be used to cover medical expenses for the people who were injured, to make sure that funerals are paid for. the community has really showed up in a huge way to try to help with that effort. >> aaron, this is barbara. we are seeing the frustration of families who've been waiting to find out if they have loved ones in the hospital or who were actually killed in the

have they been able to identify all of the 53 that were in the hospital and the 49 dead? >> reporter: to my understanding, they have identified all the 49 dead at this point. they've identified them all. they're still working to notify some families right now. we know that an overwhelming majority of the victims, we believe, were hispanic, were latino. so there have been organizations here that have had volunteers coming in to try to translate for some of these family members. i think it was the mayor said earlier today that they've had to reach out across the state and around the country to try to make contact with family of some of the victims here. there's an ongoing effort to make sure next of kin is notified, and then they're releasing the identities of the people killed here. last i saw, the hospital system here still had about 40 -- i think it

53 that were injured. that's the last thing i saw a little while ago and there were more surgeries scheduled for today. there's still a lot of recovery left for people to do here. >> aaron, you talked about this crush of people trying to help. we know that they are also trying to heal. thank you so much. and we know we'll check in with you for another update later on. >> reporter: you're welcome. >> a former co-worker of the gunman in sunday's mass shooting describes working alongside omar mateen as toxic. daniel gillroy worked for the same security company. working with mateen was so difficult that gilroy said he asked for a transfer. >> he was scary in concerning way. it wasn't at times. it was all the time. >> investigators are still trying to determine whether terrorism, hate, or both pushed

inside that nightclub. well, there have been 160 active shooter incidents in the u.s. between the year 2013. that is according to new information sent out by the fbi this morning. on average, there were about 11 incidents every year. 70% happened in either a business or educational environment. 486 people were killed in shooting incidents during that time. 557 were wounded. the mass shooting at virginia tech in 2007 is second in fatalities to the orlando incident. 32 people were killed there on campus. the incident at pulse nightclub is the deadliest shooting in u.s. history. we'll turn our attention now to the beautiful weather we have here in the washington area. nice and cool, sunshine. perfect today. >> and the low humidity, that's the big thing. we'll take this break while we can. here's a live view of

bright sunshine. just a few high clouds drifting over the region now. late morning temperatures are climbing into the low 70s now. you'll be comfortable the rest of the day with short sleeves and shorts. don't forget your sun block and sunglasses. it's a very strong sun this time of year. won't take long to get a quick burn without protection. near 70s shvalley. storm team 4 radar not showing any rain anywhere in the vicinity. a very dry air mass upon the entire mid-atlantic region. great day for outdoor exercise. near 80 by 2:00. may briefly touch the low 80s between 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. the breezes gusting between 15 and 20 miles per hour, they'll be sunlighti ingsettling down i afternoon. first pitch at

lots of sunshine. great night for baseball as they play the cubs. we'll be near 70 by the end of the dp game. dawn tomorrow, mid-6s. upper 60s 8:00 to 9:00 a.m. partly to mostly sunny during the afternoon. next chance of rain looks to be on wednesday night. off and on showers looking likely now. next weekend looks great. highs low 80s by sunday with sunshine. that's the way it looks. at the live desk, a freight train has derailed in a tunnel in baltimore. at least 13 cars derailed inside the howard street tunnel at 5:30 this morning. the train was headed towards maryland when most of the cars that derailed were empty. but

authorities say there's currently no danger to the public even though they're asking people to avoid the area. this is the same tunnel where another csx train derailed 15 years ago causing a chemical fire that burned for more than five days. >> the reaction from the two presumptive nominees for presiden

♪ ♪

♪ at the live desk, nbc news is reporting that the suspected gunman in orlando's mass shooting traveled to the middle east twice in the last five years. federal officials say omar mateen took two trips to saudi arabia in 2011 and 2012. officials are looking at the possibility he went to attend the able islamic pilgrimage to mecca. the fbi says it had investigated mateen four years ago and then again a year later after the fbi linked him to another american who traveled to the middle east to become a suicide bomber. he was not however under surveillance at the time of the shooting when he massacred 49 people and injured dozens more

yesterday. the shooting in orlando is having a big effect on the presidential race. both donald trump and hillary clinton will deliver speeches today on terrorism, shifting their focus in light of the attacks. edward lawrence has the latest. >> reporter: waking up this morning, flags on all federal buildings will be at half-staff to honor the victims of the orlando mass shooting. 50 people died and another 53 injured. the president was briefed immediately. >> the place where they were attacked is than nightclub. >> reporter: senator bernie sanders added -- >> isis must be destroyed and we've got to do everything humanly possible to prevent these types of tragedies. >> reporter: donald trump took credit for his radical islam claims in a tweet calling for more toughness and vigilance, then defended it. >> if you don't discuss it and describe it properly, yo

never going to end the problem. >> we have to defeat radical jihadist terrorism, and we will. radical jihadism, radical islamism, i think they mean the same thing. >> reporter: vigils were held in cities like austin, texas, and indianapolis, for the victims of omar mateen's terror. in washington, the gay men's choir sang the national anthem on the steps of thei u.s. capitol. deputy attorney general briefed president obama about terror links associated with this case in orlando. in washington, edward lawrence, nbc news. the shooting in orlando now ranks as the deadliest single day mass shooting in united states history. it passes the shooting of virginia tech in 2007. that's when a 23-year-old student shot 32 people to death before killing himself. 17

people gathered outside of the iconic stonewall inn in new york city sunday to mourn those who were killed. they denounced violence and intolerance aimed at the lgbt community. the inn became iconic for the gay rights movement following a police raid and street riots in 1969. an indiana man is behind bars after police found three assault rifles and chemicals to make explosives in his car. it came just hours after the shooting in orlando on sunday. a police chief initially tweeted that howell said he wanted to do harm at l.a.'s pride event. she later corrected her tweet to say that howell said he was going to the parade. one witness described his interaction with him. >> he came out the car. he started running across the street and hiding in between those trees and bushes. he stood there and we looked at

long minute. i guess he kind of got very nervous. >> the fbi says the arrest has no connection with the attack in orlando. at the live desk right now, we have another vigil in winterpark, florida. about 20 minutes north of the nightclub where the gunman massacred 49 people and injured 50 others yesterday. the shooting occurred inside pulse. several vigils were held yesterday. a prominent lgbtq community organization called the center is currently offering grief counselling just a few miles away from the nightclub. as the city of orlando continues to release the names of those who died in the attack. afy minutes ago, we did speak with aaron gilchrist live here. he's going to be

he said there's been a huge outpouring of community sip port. you can follow him on twitter to find out everything that he's learning as he's learning it. check his feed for updates throughout the day. a perfect june day under way in our region. we've got lots of sunshine. just a few high clouds drifting over. live view from our tower camera. friendship heights in the middle distance. we've got the sunshine warming temperatures nicely now. reagan national up to around 72 and the bay is well into the low 70s. no rain anywhere in our vicinity or around the region. mid-70s by 1:00. low 80s by 4:00 p.m. and upper 70s starting off the evening. new today, developers have

construction in the heart of tyson's corner, virginia. just over an hour ago, a wrecking ball smashed the building. in its place, developers are planning to build the borough. it will include shops, offices, park space and a flag ship whole foods store. >> the dalai lama will be in our region today. the speech begins at 1:30 in a couple hours this afternoon inside bender arena. another baltimore police officer is taking the stand today in the trial of freddie gray's death. the controversial witness who may take the stand today. >> and our coverage of the shooting in orlando continues. what investigators are now revealing as we start to

♪ ♪ to the women who know what real values are, you inspire us to bring you real value every day.

first of all, our hearts go out to the families of those who've been killed. our prayers go to those who've been wounded. this is a devastating attack on all americans. it is one that is particularly painful for the people of orlando, by i think we all recognize that this could have happened anywhere in this country. we feel enormous solidarity and grief on behalf of the families that have been affected. the fact that it took place at a club frequented by the lgbt community, i think, is also relevant. we're still looking at all the motivations of the killer. but it's a remindert

faith, or sexual orientation, we're all americans. and we need to be looking after each other and protecting each other at all times in the face of this kind of terrible act. >> reporter: that was president obama speaking for the first time today about the shooting in orlando yesterday. he did say that there's no clear evidence that the shooter at the orlando nightclub was directed to conduct his attack or was part of a larger plot. we are going to continue to follow up with what obama said just a few minutes ago. but we're going to send it back to you. >> thanks, tisha. another baltimore police officer is taking the stand today for freddie gray's death. we have what we're expecting to hear in baltimore. >> reporter: prosecutors have been

confrontation for months. they are trying to prove that police transport van driver cesar goodson is guilty of second-degree malicious heart murder and manslaughter by calling a tell f-- fellow officr to testify against him. prosecutors asked the judge to compel porter to testify against goodson, the driver of the transport wagon, under a grant of limited immunity. the order compelling porter to testify was upheld this spring. prosecutor claim the van driver gave freddie gray a rough ride causing gray to cause a catastrophic neck injury. officer porter was called to check on gray. he'll testify that gray told him he needed help getting up.

to go to the hospital and gray said yes. porter told goodson that gray wanted medical help, but goodson didn't do anything to get gray medical attention. prosecutors argue that goodson showed a reckless disregard for gray's life and safety. but the defense contends goodson is a good man who cares about people. in baltimore, chris gordon, news4. ♪ the father of omar mateen will apologize for his son's actions in the deadly orlando shooting coming up. >> we're going to hear from him

♪ back with the latest out of orlando this morning where a fuller picture is emerging of shooter omar mateen as well as growing picture of solidarity with the victims, survivors and their families. let's check back in with sarah rosario at the hospital where dozens are still recovering. >> reporter: more than 24 histories after the deadliest shooting in u.s. history, the city of orlando stands united. many of those victims are

hospital. meanwhile, we're learning more about the people killed inside the club. we're also learning more about the gunman and moments after the shooting. we are now learning more about the people killed inside the club. officials telling us this morning there are 49 victims. the 50th person is the shooter. >> we will not be defined by the act of a cowardly hater. we will be defined by how we respond, how we treat each other. this community has already stepped up to do that. >> reporter: orlando's mayor buddy dyer updating us on efforts to sift through the evidence and learn more about the shooter, 29-year-old omar mateen. their first priority identifying victims and notifying family. >> the shooter was included in the number of 50. >> reporter: investigators worked through the night to confirm ids of 48 of the 49 victims. only notifying about half of the families so far. a grueling task for inig

ones. mateen pledged his allegiance to isis in 911 calls after storming into pulse nightclub. after he started shooting, he held hostages in the bathroom. officers rushing in with bomb vests and used explosives to blow a hole through the wall. >> the explosive breach did not penetrate the wall completely. we iced our armored vehicle to punch a whole in that wall. there's a whole hole in the wall about 2 feet off the ground and about 2 or 3 feet wide. we were able to rescue dozens and dozens of people. >> reporter: now the community and nation are coming together in complete shock as we deal with the aftermath of the nation's deadliest shooting. and the fbi tells us they did find a third gun inside the shooter's car.

and cool while he was calling 911 inside the club pledging allegiance to isisment back to you. the father of omar mateen, the gunman in the orlando shooting is speaking to nbc news. >> he is expressing regret and apologizing for what his son did. kerry sanders has the latest. >> reporter: the gunman's fair post add video on facebook apologizing for his son's actions in his native language. he called his son a good boy, well educated, and living a dignified life, but also included this statement. the punishment for homo sexuality is upon god and he will decide on them not humans. just hours earlier, he spoke at length with nbc news about what his son did. >> this is -- i am as shock as you are. i don't approve this. ine

the freedom and the choice to run his life how he likes run his life and nobody has the right to do anything or impose anything. so i don't approve of him, what he did. >> reporter: did you know that he had purchased these weapons? >> no. i wish i did know. i wish i did know. if i did know that he purchase weapon, this would not have happen. >> reporter: this is very hard to understand. you saw your son just hours before he went on this rampage. >> exactly. >> reporter: and nothing -- it was one person and this person -- this murderous rampage was another person? >> become another person. >> reporter: did he ever talk about homosexuality? >> one time we were in miami, saw the behavior of one couple. and he got a little bit ticked off. >> reporter: what did he say? >> look at this. >> reporter: what did you see? >> two guys

in front of the family and kids. my heart and my mind goes for all those people they lost loved one and those families, brothers and sisters that got injured. i wish them a speedy recovery. and i hope this never happens to our great land united state of america and american people are loving people and i believe in forgiveness and i -- >> reporter: you believe that there's forgiveness here? >> i hope so. because what my son did is a horrible thing. >> that was kerry sanders reporting. >> meanwhile, flags rraround th country are flying at half-staff. this is what the capitol wheel in national harbor looked like last night. in new york city, the empire state building lit up in the colors of the

so did the city hall in los angeles and tel-aviv as well. tonight, in paris, the eiffel tower will be lit this way to honor the victims of the shooting. today, there will be a candlelight vigil for the woman killed in another deadly shooting in orlando this past weekend. christina grimmie was shot and killed on friday night. grimmie was a former contestant on nbc's "the voice." the vigil tonight will be held in her hometown in new jersey. and right now, the parents of a clarksburg high school student killed in that bad car crash are preparing to bury their fun. the funeral was held this morning. last tuesday, they were riding in a pickup truck on burnhill road in damascus. the pickup truck left the road and slammed into a tree. all three

ood, a man who will sentenced. malik lloyd was drunk when he jumped a sidewalk in d.c. and hit a pole january 1st. lloyd pleaded guilty to dui, felony assault and destruction of property in march. 13 people were hurt. closing arguments are set to begin today in the trial against a virginia lawyer. he is accused of tasering, shooting, and stabbing a mcclain couple in 2014 after his wife was fired -- fired by one of the victims who he shot. the defense is trying to prove that he was impaired by multiple medications at the time of the crime. as we approach the noon hour, not feeling too bad outside. >> beautiful morning. >> it is climbing into the 70s now. a great day to get your exercise in. maybe get in a run, do a brisk walk. we'll have low humidity into the

upper 70s to near 80s. and hover mid-80s for a couple hours. the blustery winds we have now will be diminishing. right now, climbing into the low and mid-70s. big name tonight. nationals taking on the cubs, best team in baseball, the cubs. it should be a great series. first pitch at 7:05. upper 70s with a light wind, lots of sunshine. dropping back down to near 70 by the last out. by dawn tomorrow, down to the mid-60s. during the day on tuesday, morning clouds. highs into the low and mid-80s. again, another day with low humidity. getting a little more hiehumid wednesday. there's a chance of a shower or thundershower late on wednesday night. maybe some thinder

reaching the low to mid-80s. friday, cooler weather. still possibility of off and on showers. temperatures in the mid-70s. nice weekend coming up saturday and sunday with sunshine back and a little less humid. that's the way it looks. your tragedy is our tragedy. theater is a place where every race, creed, sexuality, and gender is equal, is embraced and is loved. >> somber moments at the tony awards as actors reflect on the orlando shooting. the message from the cast of "hamilton" is being shared with tens othousands.f

my wife's the reason anything gets done. she nudges me towards promise by degrees. she is a perfect symphony. we chase the melodies that seem to find us until they're finished songs and start to play. when senseless acts of tragedy remind us that nothing here is promised. not one day. >> tributes are pouring in for the victims of the orlando club shootings and their families. >> they took center stage as "hamilton" creator spoke at the tony awards last night. "hamilton" went onto win seven

tieing the record. let's check on the weather. real winner out there today. >> it is a masterpiece, low humidity. into the mid-70s much of the region. we'll continue to climb into the low 80s during the afternoon histories. it will settle down by late afternoon. tomorrow, another day with low humidity. afternoon highs into the mid-80s. wednesday, a little more humid. afternoon highs mid-80s. next chance of rain, late wednesday night. then off and on showers on thursday with occasional lightning perhaps and temperatures in the mid-80s. a bit cooler on friday, still looking wet. highs reaching the 7s. but drying out for the weekend. >> thank you, tom. that's going to do it for news4 midday. our coverage of the orlando shootings continues first at 4:00 and any time on the nbc washington pp

the victims of the orlando shooting. ♪

♪ >> announcer: today on "the meredith vieira show." you won't believe what one woman confessed to doing every single day before work. and "today" matt lauer and savannah guthrie are dishing about and behind the scenes drinks and pet peeves. and can they spot a real meredith story from a fake? and we have "say yes to the dress"'s monte durham unveiling the hottest prom dresses plus a deserving young woman gets a big surprise. it all starts right now on "meredith"! ♪ [applauding]