Until about 8:00 p.m. on the night of October 25 Maine had never before seen mass shootings anywhere near the scale of what began to unfold in Lewiston, Maine’s second largest city. As of 10:35 p.m. reports indicated that between 16-22 people had been killed in three locations by a white man with an assault rifle and sirens from police cars and ambulances filled the night as they rushed the wounded to the hospital.
Law enforcement are hunting for the killer, and ask people to shelter in place, keep doors locked, and call 911 with any information or suspicious activity.
The superintendent announced that there will be no school in Lewiston on Thursday.
In addition to a large Irish and Franco-American population, Lewiston is home to many refugees from countries including Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Iraq, Rwanda, and Somalia, who have fled violence in their homelands.
