The search for a mass killer in Maine continued Thursday morning with Lewiston still under lockdown hours after deadly shootings at two local businesses.
Many details on what happened, including the number killed, remained unclear after the shooting at a bowling alley and a restaurant Wednesday evening. Authorities were expected to share more information at a 10:30 a.m. news conference at Lewiston City Hall.
Law enforcement sources told NBC News that between 15 and 20 people were killed and 50 more hurt — including some injured while fleeing.
No suspect has yet been named, but a person of interest, considered armed and dangerous, was identified. Robert Card, a 40-year-old with a military background, was being sought for questioning in the case, part of a massive dragnet set up by local, state and federal law enforcement responding to one of Maine’s most brazen criminal acts in years.
A vehicle of interest was found in Lisbon Wednesday night, and, like in nearby Lewiston, town offices there were closed Thursday as officials issued a shelter-in-place order there as well. The Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office had yet to retract its advice that all businesses in the area lock down or close.
The shooting left Maine’s governor and other leaders horrified. Experts told NBC10 Boston that the person shown on the surveillance footage was evidently prepared to kill people.
Scott Sweetow, a former agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, talks about the shooting that killed 22 people in Lewiston, Maine.
The streets near the two shooting locations, the Sparetime Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar and Grille restaurant, were set to remain closed Thursday.
Robert Card, a 40-year-old from Bowdoin, was identified as the person of interest. He is a firearms instructor trained by the military and was recently committed to a mental health facility, according to a state police bulletin, reviewed by The Associated Press and NBC News, that was being circulated to law enforcement officials on Wednesday night.
In a news conference on Wednesday night, Mike Sauschuck, commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, said hundreds of officers are involved in the search. He said additional information will be released throughout the night as it becomes available.
He said a “reunification center” has been set up at nearby Auburn Middle School for anyone looking to reunite with family members who are unaccounted for.
“This is a very fluid situation,” Sauschuck said, declining to give a total number of people dead or injured. “We are looking for this person of interest right now.”
Jason Levesque, mayor of Auburn, Maine, spoke after Wednesday’s deadly mass shooting in neighboring Lewiston.
Hospitals in the area, which is north of Portland and southwest of Augusta, had activated critical care procedures to deal with the influx of casualties.
Lewiston Police said in a Facebook post that they were dealing with an active shooter incident at Schemengees Bar and Grille and at Sparetime Recreation, a bowling alley about 4 miles away.
One bowler, who identified himself only as Brandon, said he heard about 10 shots, thinking the first was a balloon popping.
“I had my back turned to the door. And as soon as I turned and saw it was not a balloon — he was holding a weapon — I just booked it,” he told The Associated Press.
Brandon said he scrambled down the length of the alley, sliding into the pin area and climbing up to hide in the machinery. He was among a busload of survivors who were driven to a middle school in the neighboring city of Auburn to be reunited with family and friends.
“I was putting on my bowling shoes when when it started. I’ve been barefoot for five hours,” he said.
Ed Davis, who led the Boston Police Department during the Boston Marathon bombings and the subsequent manhunt, draws on that experience in discussing the deadly mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine.
After the shooting, police, many armed with rifles, took up positions while the city descended into eerie quiet — punctuated by occasional sirens — as people hunkered down at home.
Gov. Janet Mills released a statement echoing instructions for people to shelter. She said she had been briefed on the situation and will remain in close contact with public safety officials.
President Joe Biden spoke by phone to Mills and the state’s Senate and House members, offering “full federal support in the wake of this horrific attack,” a White House statement said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.