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Fort Lauderdale Airport Shooting Update: 5 Dead, Many Injured, Suspect ID’d, In Custody [Breaking]

By Amanda Katherine
Published on: 06:42 PST, Jan 6, 2017

The mass shooting at the Hollywood Airport in Fort Lauderdale ended with five people dead and many injured. Police have a suspect in custody.

Gunshots were fired at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport on Friday, leaving five people dead and at least eight injured, according to updated reports from CNN.

Former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer was on-site during the shooting and tweeted out the following update.

Everyone was evacuated from the terminal, and people were running with fear, including TSA agents.

“I got off the plane and I saw people running and screaming. At first I was in shock but when I saw TSA agents running, I booked.”

Fleischer provided an update and said that police were not letting people leave the airport.

At around 12:55 p.m. ET, calls to 911 came in of people frantically reporting the shooting, according to NBC News.

The shooting happened in the baggage claim area of Terminal 2, according to police officials in Broward County.

Investigators have the suspect in custody and are currently trying to figure out the gunman’s motive for the mass shooting, law enforcement expert Jim Cavanaugh told reporters.

“You’re trying to understand, is this a one-off guy? Regardless of motive, is he alone, or is there something else? We hate to think that way, but that’s the requirement for police commanders — to think that way.”

In the aftermath of the mass shooting, news cameras crowded around the airport to capture firefighters and other emergency workers rushing to help people on the tarmac.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives said agents were going to the scene to help state and local authorities.

Agencies on the scene include Fort Lauderdale Police, Hollywood Police, Broward County Sheriff’s Office, the TSA, the ATF, and the FBI. The Florida Highway Patrol is directing traffic.

Bob Foster told MSNBC that he was waiting for his flight on board a plane when the shooting began, and crews evacuated people as soon as they knew the coast was clear.

“We were told to hit the deck and we stayed there until we were given the green light to leave. Needless to say, everybody’s pretty shaken up.”

Flights are all suspended leaving and coming to Fort Lauderdale, which the airport told People is standard procedure during these types of emergencies.

In Florida, there have been 11 Active Shooter Preparedness Workshops, however, none of them were conducted in Ft. Lauderdale.

Flordia Governor Rick Scott said that he was on his way to the scene to be briefed by police, according to Twitter.

The Daily Beast reported that the shooter was identified as Esteban Santiago. This information was announced by Senator Bill Nelson who also said that the gunman had a military ID and handgun with him when he shot and killed several people, injuring even more.

Donald Trump just tweeted out that he will be monitoring the situation and that he had just spoken with Gov. Scott.

[Featured Image by Joe Raedle/Staff/Getty Images]

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