Hossen Sohel: A gunman killed four people and wounded several others on Sunday when he opened fire at a video game tournament that was being streamed online from a restaurant in Jacksonville, Florida, police and local media said.
Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams said one white male suspect was dead at the scene, reports Reuters.
The shooting took place during a regional qualifier for the Madden 19 online game tournament at the GLHF Game Bar inside a Chicago Pizza restaurant, according to the venue’s website.
The bar was livestreaming the competition when the gunfire started, according to video of the stream shared on social media.
In the video, players can be seen reacting to the shots and cries can be heard before the footage cuts off.
The Florida shooting occurred amid a debate about US gun laws that was given fresh impetus by the massacre in February of 17 people at a high school in Parkland, Florida.
A spokesman for Jacksonville’s Memorial Hospital said it was treating three victims, all of whom were in stable condition. Jacksonville, on Florida’s Atlantic Coast, is about 35 miles south of the Georgia state line.
Florida Governor Rick Scott, a Republican who is challenging longtime Democratic Senator Bill Nelson in November’s election, said he had offered to provide local authorities with any state resources they might need.
Marco Rubio, US senator from Florida, said the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were coordinating with local authorities to provide assistance. President Donald Trump has been briefed and is monitoring the situation in Jacksonville, the White House said. Reacting to news of the shooting during the tournament involving its game, Madden 19 maker Electronic Arts Inc said it was working with authorities to gather facts.