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UPDATE
ORLANDO — The Orlando Police Chief Val Demings has confirmed a S.W.A.T. team has arrested the gunman. Officials have also confirmed 1 dead and 5 injured.
Demings says 40-year-old Jason Rodriguez surrendered to police at his mother's home after officers saw him through a window and asked him to come out.
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Police Sgt. Barbara Jones identified the suspect as Jason Rodriguez, 40, a former employee in the building who she said was believed to be at large and armed. Rodriguez was believed to be wearing a light-blue polo shirt and blue jeans and driving a silver 2002 Nissan sport-utility vehicle with Florida plates D119UX, authorities said.
A witness told WESH that the shooter had not worked there in more than a year. She was whisked away by police before she could say more.
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ORLANDO, Fla. -
Quoting emergency dispatchers, NBC station WESH-TV of Orlando reported that the shooting began about 11 a.m. ET on the fourth floor of the Gateway Center at 1000 Legion Place near Lake Ivanhoe.
All of the victims were taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center.
Orlando fire Cmdr. Vicky Robles said seven people were in critical condition with gunshot wounds. An eighth person, who was not shot, was in stable condition because of a “cardiac event.”
Police Sgt. Barbara Jones identified the suspect as Jason Rodriguez, 40, a former employee in the building who she said was believed to be at large and armed. Rodriguez was believed to be wearing a light-blue polo shirt and blue jeans and driving a silver 2002 Nissan sport-utility vehicle with Florida plates D119UX, authorities said.
A witness told WESH that the shooter had not worked there in more than a year. She was whisked away by police before she could say more.
“T hings are still unfolding,” Jones told reporters. “We’re still trying to secure various structures around the area to make sure the shooter is not still in the area.”
Michael Droege, district chief for the Orlando Fire Department, told WESH that an unknown number of people were still in the building and could be injured. He said the SWAT team was still trying to pull people out of the building.
Some occupants were reported to have barricaded themselves in an office for protection.
SWAT officers were going floor by floor to secure the building, officials said.
Gateway Center is a 16-story office building that was built in 1999.
Interstate 4 eastbound was shut down while police converged on the area, and nearby Edgewater High School was locked down.
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The Orlando chief of police says five victims have been transported to the Orland Medical Center. He also says as far as he knows, none have died that were transported to the center.
Orlando Police Sgt. Barbara Jones says the amount of victims involved is below 10.
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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Police are searching for a gunman who
injured at least eight people at a downtown Orlando, Fla., office
building.
People are streaming out of the building and some say they have
barricaded themselves inside their offices.
Orange County Sheriff's Spokesman Jim Solomons says his
department is backing up Orlando police and they're still looking
for an armed man wearing a light blue polo shirt and jeans.
Orlando Police Sgt. Barbara Jones confirms there has been a
shooting at a high-rise and multiple people have been hurt but she
can't say how many. She says there is only one shooter.
The Orlando Fire Department tells WESH-TV that at least eight
people are injured. Interstate 4 is closed in both directions
through downtown and a nearby school is locked down.
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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - People are streaming out of an office
building in downtown Orlando, Fla., where officials say a shooter
is on the loose.
Orange County Sheriff's Spokesman Jim Solomons says his
department is backing up Orlando police and they're still looking
for an armed man wearing a light blue polo shirt and jeans.
The Legions Place office building in downtown Orlando was
ordered on lockdown Friday afternoon as officers began a
floor-by-floor evacuation.
Orlando Police Sgt. Barbara Jones confirms there has been a
shooting but can't say how many people are hurt.
The Orlando Fire Department tells WESH-TV that at least eight
people are injured. Interstate 4 is closed in both directions
through downtown and a nearby school is locked down.
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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Police have surrounded a Florida high-rise
after gun shots were reportedly fired.
The Legions Place office building in downtown Orlando was
ordered on lockdown Friday afternoon as officers began a
floor-by-floor evacuation.
Orlando Police Sgt. Barbara Jones confirms there has been a
shooting but could not say how many people, if any, were hurt.
Orlando Fire Department spokeswoman Vicky Robles tells WESH 2 a
shooter has not been taken into custody.
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ORLANDO — Authorities in Orlando are at an office building looking into reports of a shooting.
Investigators say there may be several victims in the building and ambulance crews have entered the building with two stretchers.
There is a heavy police presence near a lake and traffic is being diverted.
Officers have not released details about the incident.