Blog Briefing Room

Jason Aldean: Las Vegas shooting ‘beyond horrific’

Singer Jason Aldean, who was onstage when a gunman opened fire on fans at a country music festival in Las Vegas, is calling the mass shooting “beyond horrific.”

“Tonight has been beyond horrific,” Aldean wrote in a caption on his Instagram page. “I still dont know what to say but wanted to let everyone know that Me and my Crew are safe. My Thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved tonight. It hurts my heart that this would happen to anyone who was just coming out to enjoy what should have been a fun night. #heartbroken #stopthehate

At least 58 people were killed and 500 injured when a gunman opened fire while Aldean was performing.

{mosads}The suspected gunman has been identified as 64-year-old Stephen Paddock. Paddock allegedly fired from the 32nd floor in the Mandalay Bay hotel, showering the crowd at the open-air Route 91 Harvest Festival with bullets. A video from the incident posted on social media shows audience members crouching and screaming as three separate rounds of gunfire are heard.

Paddock was found dead in his room at the resort, according to police.

The shooting is the deadliest in U.S. history, with the death toll surpassing the June 2016 shooting in an Orlando nightclub, which killed 49.

—This report was updated at 10:20 a.m.