--- description: Witnesses at a Las Vegas casino where a gunman opened fire, killing at least 50 people and injuring hundreds, say it seemed like the shots would never end. title: 'It Was a Horror Show.' Witnesses Recall the Moment Gunfire Began in Las Vegas image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfbcc54264849efc0/6988e01e656a3f21e5bd1ea6/las-vegas-shooting-mandalay-bay-photos-25.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Crime](/tag/crime/) ## Crime Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 'It Was a Horror Show.' Witnesses Recall the Moment Gunfire Began in Las Vegas by [Char Adams / People](/author/people/) ## Char Adams / People Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 2, 2017 5:08 PM CUT  People scramble for shelter at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after a shooting, Oct. 1, 2017 in Las Vegas. People scramble for shelter at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after a shooting, Oct. 1, 2017 in Las Vegas.David Becker—Getty Images by [Char Adams / People](/author/people/) ## Char Adams / People Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 2, 2017 5:08 PM CUT Witnesses at a Las Vegas casino [where a gunman opened fire](http://people.com/crime/active-shooter-reported-near-las-vegas-casino-hotel-during-country-music-festival/ "undefined"), killing at least 50 people and injuring hundreds, say it seemed like the shots would never end. “It just kept coming,” Robyn Webb told [_The Las Vegas Review-Journal_](https://www.reviewjournal.com/local/the-strip/it-was-a-horror-show-mass-shooting-leaves-more-than-20-dead-100-wounded-on-las-vegas-strip/ "undefined") of the gunfire. “It was relentless.” For several minutes gunman Stephen Paddock, 64, rained automatic gunfire on the crowd. Many of the victims were trapped at the Route 91 Harvest Festival. The ordeal lasted for about two hours before Paddock was found dead in a Mandalay Bay hotel room filled with more than 10 rifles, Las Vegas Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said. The first shots were reported shortly after 10 p.m. Las Vegas police SWAT officers killed Paddock on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Casino around midnight, the [_New York Times_](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/02/us/las-vegas-shooting.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=a-lede-package-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news "undefined") reports. “It was was a horror show,” witness Ivetta Saldana told the _Review-Journal_. “People were standing around, then they hit the floor.” Mike Cronk told [_Good Morning America_](http://abcnews.go.com/US/vegas-strip-shooting-20-dead-100-injured-gunman/story?id=50223240 "undefined") that a man died in his arms as he and his friends worked to get an injured pal to an ambulance safely. “He got hit three times,” Cronk said of his friend. “It took a while to get him out. We had to get him over the fence and hiding under the stage for a while, ya know, to be safe. And finally we had to move him because he had three chest wounds.” The group finally made it to an ambulance where, Cronk said, “basically the one guy ended up dying in my arms because he was bleeding.” He added that his friend is expected to survive. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department announced Sunday night that [an active shooter](https://twitter.com/LVMPD/status/914726209770029056 "undefined") has been reported near the casino and advised people to avoid the area.Lombardo announced at a Monday press conference that police have located a woman believed to be Paddock’s companion, [Marilou Danley](https://twitter.com/LVMPD/status/914782708831625216 "undefined"). They later determined that Danley was likely not involved in the shooting, but Paddock used her identification to check into the hotel. A spokesperson from the Mesquite police tells PEOPLE neither Paddock nor Danley had prior run-ins with local police. Michelle Leonard told reporters that there was “mass confusion” as people attempted to flee the venue, noting that the gunfire “kept going nonstop.” “I had no idea of where it was coming from or where to run to,” she said. Another woman who was at the shot told the morning show that she called family members to tell them that she loved them. “We thought we were gonna die,” she said. _This_ [_article_](http://people.com/crime/witnesses-rhorro-las-vegas-gunman-shooting/ "undefined") _originally appeared on_ [_People.com_](http://www.people.com "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4965508/las-vegas-shooting-witnesses/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4965508/las-vegas-shooting-witnesses/"},"headline":"'It Was a Horror Show.' 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