0:00:17 > 0:00:21Welcome to this special edition of Reporters.
0:00:21 > 0:00:23I'm Laura Bicker in Orlando, Florida, as America comes
0:00:23 > 0:00:27to terms with its worst mass shooting in recent history.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31We'll have a range of reports from our correspondents
0:00:31 > 0:00:34on the aftermath of this attack, including what it might mean
0:00:34 > 0:00:37for the nation's attitudes towards human rights and gun laws.
0:00:38 > 0:00:39Coming up:
0:00:40 > 0:00:42GUNFIRE
0:00:42 > 0:00:44Oh my God, they're all shooting back and forth.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46The moment a party turned into an atrocity.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49Images shot by one of the victims of the United States' worst
0:00:49 > 0:00:52terror attack since 9/11.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55The US-born gunman who pledged allegiance to IS.
0:00:55 > 0:00:59President Obama calls it an attack on all Americans.
0:00:59 > 0:01:01And, love will prevail.
0:01:01 > 0:01:03A video message from the gay community in Orlando
0:01:03 > 0:01:05to the rest of the world.
0:01:05 > 0:01:07Do not let fear take away your life.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09Educate.
0:01:09 > 0:01:10Be involved.
0:01:10 > 0:01:13Love will always win.
0:01:19 > 0:01:2149 dead, 53 injured.
0:01:21 > 0:01:26The worst mass shooting in America's history unfolded in three hours
0:01:26 > 0:01:30of hell at the Pulse nightclub here in Orlando, Florida.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33President Obama described the attack at a gay nightclub as
0:01:34 > 0:01:36an attack on all Americans.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39The gunman, Omar Mateen, dialled 911 from the bathroom
0:01:39 > 0:01:42of the club during the shootings to pledge allegiance
0:01:42 > 0:01:45to the so-called Islamic State group.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48But it later emerged that he may have visited the club
0:01:48 > 0:01:49several times before.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Gabriel Gatehouse has this report on how the tragedy unfolded.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54And I should warn you,
0:01:54 > 0:02:00there may be some disturbing images in his report.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03MUSIC
0:02:03 > 0:02:06It's Latino night at Pulse, a buzzing gay nightclub
0:02:06 > 0:02:08in downtown Orlando.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11By closing time, the dance floor is nearly full.
0:02:11 > 0:02:16At 2:02am, Omar Mateen goes inside and starts
0:02:16 > 0:02:18shooting into the crowd.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20An off-duty police officer, working at the nightclub,
0:02:20 > 0:02:23exchanges fire with the gunman.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27Eddie Justice texts his mother, Mina, from inside
0:02:27 > 0:02:29a bathroom in the club.
0:02:29 > 0:02:33"Mummy, I love you." In club, they're shooting."
0:02:33 > 0:02:38At 2:09am, the club posts on its Facebook page,
0:02:38 > 0:02:42"Everyone get out of Pulse and keep running".
0:02:44 > 0:02:48Josean Garcia, a former DJ at the club, is out with a group
0:02:48 > 0:02:52of nine friends, including Amanda and Mercedes.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55We heard the gunshots,
0:02:55 > 0:02:58and once we noticed it was real, everybody ducked to the floor.
0:02:58 > 0:03:00It was right next to me.
0:03:00 > 0:03:06I had blood all over my arms. And it was actually from him.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10And the shooting just continued, it just continued.
0:03:10 > 0:03:13It just didn't stop.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17And as soon as it stopped and I kind of heard him like reloading,
0:03:17 > 0:03:21I got up and ran to one of the back doors.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24Amanda records a final video on Snapchat.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30GUNFIRE
0:03:31 > 0:03:36She and her best friend Mercedes are later confirmed dead.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39Now Omar Mateen, armed with an assault rifle and a handgun,
0:03:39 > 0:03:42begins to take hostages.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45He calls 911, pledging allegiance to Islamic State,
0:03:45 > 0:03:49and makes reference to the Boston Marathon bombs.
0:03:49 > 0:03:522:39am - still inside the bathroom,
0:03:52 > 0:03:56Eddie Justice sends another message to his mother.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59"He's coming, I'm going to die."
0:03:59 > 0:04:04He too has since been confirmed as one of the dead.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08At 5:05am, police and SWAT team members decide to move in.
0:04:08 > 0:04:14They force their way into the club with explosives and a battering ram.
0:04:14 > 0:04:1811 officers exchange gunfire with the shooter.
0:04:18 > 0:04:2130 hostages are rescued.
0:04:21 > 0:04:245:48am - Orlando Police tweet,
0:04:24 > 0:04:31"We can confirm this is a mass casualty situation."
0:04:31 > 0:04:33At 5:53am, police confirm the shooter,
0:04:33 > 0:04:38Omar Mateen, is dead.
0:04:38 > 0:04:417am - as the authorities begin to search for answers,
0:04:41 > 0:04:46investigators inside the club hear victims' mobile phones
0:04:46 > 0:04:49ringing as family members, desperate for news,
0:04:49 > 0:04:51try to contact them.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53Police say suspicious devices were found
0:04:53 > 0:04:56on the gunman and in his car.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59Florida Department of Law Enforcement Special Agent In Charge,
0:04:59 > 0:05:02Danny Banks, calls the shooting "an act of terrorism."
0:05:02 > 0:05:05Any time that we have potentially dozens of victims in any
0:05:05 > 0:05:09of our communities, then I think we can qualify that
0:05:09 > 0:05:12as terrorist activity.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16At 10:30am, law enforcement officials confirmed that 50 people,
0:05:16 > 0:05:19including the shooter, are dead,
0:05:19 > 0:05:22and 53 others are injured.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26As America mourns, Orlando adds its name to an ever-growing list.
0:05:26 > 0:05:31San Bernardino, Charleston, Sandy Hook, Fort Hood,
0:05:31 > 0:05:35Virginia Tech, Columbine, and many more.
0:05:35 > 0:05:39But the murder unleashed at the Pulse nightclub sets itself
0:05:39 > 0:05:41apart in scale and in context.
0:05:41 > 0:05:46Whilst families and friends of those killed try to come to terms
0:05:46 > 0:05:49with their personal loss, the deadliest shooting in this
0:05:49 > 0:05:53country's modern history has set off an explosive charge right along
0:05:53 > 0:05:57America's most divisive political fault lines.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00The attack at the Pulse nightclub here in Orlando was clearly
0:06:00 > 0:06:02an act of terrorism.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06But it was also a hate crime, perpetrated against Florida's gay
0:06:06 > 0:06:08community.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10Clive Myrie has been speaking to two Florida residents
0:06:10 > 0:06:13about their responses to the tragedy.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17They are a staple of suburban America - the stars and stripes.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20Shorthand for certain values, a lover of country.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23In Orlando this week, you'll also see this...
0:06:23 > 0:06:27And this...
0:06:27 > 0:06:30And they symbolise a love of country, too.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34Billy Wilks has lived here for 28 years, and is proud to be gay.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37I had an American flag out, but I changed it and put
0:06:37 > 0:06:40that up the minute I heard about it.
0:06:40 > 0:06:44Why? It just made me feel good.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47It made me feel like I was paying respect to those that did
0:06:47 > 0:06:50lose their lives.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53It's in this painful moment that those who are LGBT can reflect
0:06:53 > 0:06:55on how far they've come.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58The killer, Omar Mateen, brought carnage here
0:06:58 > 0:07:01because he hated society's embrace of the community.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05But some are now questioning God's acceptance.
0:07:05 > 0:07:09Reverend Terri Steed Pierce has been out for nearly 30 years.
0:07:09 > 0:07:14I will continue to tell those people who come and question that
0:07:14 > 0:07:17God is here with us, and wants better for us.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20The killer tried to do that, you think, he tried to force
0:07:20 > 0:07:22you back into the closet?
0:07:22 > 0:07:25He was trying to force us back into a closet
0:07:25 > 0:07:28that was never meant for us.
0:07:28 > 0:07:30And we will stand tall and we will stand proud.
0:07:30 > 0:07:31We can't be afraid.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34As a city mourns, President Obama says the attack on the gay nightclub
0:07:34 > 0:07:36was an attack on all Americans.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39The outpouring of horror and grief nationwide is testament to that.
0:07:39 > 0:07:44What is the one piece of advice the LGBT community has for young
0:07:44 > 0:07:48viewers around the world who may have watched this tragedy unfold?
0:07:48 > 0:07:53We compiled this video message from them to people,
0:07:53 > 0:07:57young and old, in America and beyond, about facing adversity.
0:07:57 > 0:08:02Dear LGBT youth...
0:08:02 > 0:08:06You may have seen the tragedy that occurred here in Orlando...
0:08:06 > 0:08:09But we wanted to say...
0:08:09 > 0:08:12Don't be scared.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15Who you are is important for the future.
0:08:15 > 0:08:20I love you.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22Do not let fear take away your light.
0:08:22 > 0:08:26Educate. Be involved.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Love will always win.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32Don't let a man, with or without a gun, stop you ever
0:08:32 > 0:08:34from being fierce.
0:08:34 > 0:08:40I must not fear.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42Fear is the mind killer.
0:08:42 > 0:08:50Don't let the act of hate define who you are and who we are.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54We are one, and love will always win.
0:08:54 > 0:08:59Be strong, be proud, and most importantly, be you.
0:08:59 > 0:09:05Never deny who you are.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07You're made of star stuff.
0:09:07 > 0:09:12Love is love.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16No one can take away who you truly are.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20Have faith in yourself and have faith in love.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24Love is a powerful thing.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28And at the end of the day, love will always prevail.
0:09:34 > 0:09:36Love will always prevail.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39That is a poignant message from the LGBT
0:09:39 > 0:09:41community here in Florida.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45Well, that's it for this special edition of Reporters.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49We will leave you with some images of Orlando, and around the world,
0:09:49 > 0:09:51as America mourns its worst mass shooting in recent US history.
0:09:51 > 0:09:58From me, Laura Bicker, and the team here in Orlando, Florida, goodbye.
0:10:02 > 0:10:04# O say can you see
0:10:04 > 0:10:09# By the dawn's early light
0:10:09 > 0:10:14# What so proudly we hailed
0:10:14 > 0:10:18# At the twilight's last gleaming
0:10:18 > 0:10:24# Through the perilous fight
0:10:24 > 0:10:30# O'er the ramparts we watched
0:10:30 > 0:10:36# Were so gallantly streaming
0:10:36 > 0:10:40# Whose broad stripes and bright stars
0:10:40 > 0:10:44# Through the perilous fight
0:10:44 > 0:10:49# O'er the ramparts we watched
0:10:49 > 0:10:53# Were so gallantly streaming... #