Announcer terror in orlando, this is nbc nightly news with lester holt. Reporting tonight from orlando. Good evening. First, the shock and now the soulsearching questions. Tonight we now know virtually minute by minute how a single gunman perpetrated the deadliest shooting in American History and about the three phone calls between the terrorists and a 911 operator during the siege. The questions focus on how a man previously investigated by the fbi over jihadist sympathies still managed to slip below the radar, to buy guns and commit this hideous attack. And there are questions about the police response, and the timing of their assault. A day of rapid developments about the killer, his motivations, the victims, and those they leave behind. And we begin our expanded coverage with nbcs miguel almaguer. Reporter tonight new images inside pulse. The gay nightclub during its popular last night. Music, dancing and then gunfire. Amanda captured the shooting is among the dead. Today survivors
Revealed that mateen himself expressed allegiance to isis in a 911 call before launching his attack. Police say the 29yearold walked into that popular gay nightclub just after 2 00 early sunday morning and opened fire. This morning, we received an update on how things unfolded after that. Police say officers engaged the gunman, forcing him into a bathroom where he was holed up with hostages. For three hours, hostage negotiators talked to the gunman as he was barricaded in the bathroom with several other people. Around 5 00 a. M. Those talks broke down and at that point Police Feared imminent loss of life n used explosives and a robot to break through the nightclubs back wall. There was a hole in the wall about two feet off the ground and two or three feet wide. We were able to rescue dozens and dozens of people that came out of that hole. The suspect came out of that hole himself armed with a handgun and long gun, engaged in a gun battle with officers where he was ultimately killed. In