Image source, Getty Images

US Congressman Jared Golden, who lives in Lewiston, says he is "horrified" by events there.

"This is my hometown," he says.

In a statement on social media, Golden says he was looking to local law enforcement "as they gain control of the situation and gather information".

US President Joe Biden also spoke to Golden about the federal response.

"Our hearts break for those who are affected," he adds.

Image source, Reuters

"I urge all people in the [Lewiston] area to follow the direction of state and local enforcement," Governor Janet Mills said in reaction to the mass shooting in Lewiston.

She explained that she will "continue to monitor the situation and remain in close contact with public safety officials".

As we reported earlier, US President Joe Biden said he had spoken Mills, as well as Senators Angus King and Susan Collins, and Congressman Jared Golden about the situation in Lewiston.

The president offered full federal support in the wake of the attack.

A resident from the nearby city of Auburn told local media she was picking up a prescription at a supermarket in Lewiston when a speaker in the store warned of the active shooter.

Auburn borders Lewiston and the two cities are often described as twin-cities, kept separate by the Androscoggin river.

"A loudspeaker in the store came on telling us that there was an active shooter situation and that all entrance/exit doors were being locked," Anne Kinney explained.

Quoted in the Portland Press Herald, Kinney said an employee brought some chairs for them to sit on until a police officer arrived.

The officer then advised those in the store to let customers leave "one by one" and "then to dim store lights and completely close", she added.

Kinney told local media she felt "very shaken" but was able to get home safely.

Image source, EPA

A suspect is still at large after a mass shooting event in Lewiston, Maine left at least 16 feared dead and dozens injured.

• Police are still looking for "armed and dangerous" Robert Card, a firearms instructor they named as a person of interest
• Residents in Lewiston and nearby Lisbon have been told to shelter in place
• The Central Maine Medical Center said it was reacting to a "mass casualty, mass shooter event"
• Lewiston Police said it responded to two locations, a restaurant called Schemengees, and a bowling alley
• The White House said President Joe Biden is being updated on the situation and offered “full federal support”

Image source, Getty Images

Lewiston is Maine’s second most populous city with more than 38,000 people living there, according to US Census data, external.

The city is roughly 36 miles (58 km) from Portland – Maine’s largest city. The entire state has 24 cities and a population of more than 1.3m people.

Most gun-related deaths in Maine are due to suicide rather than homicide.

According to data shared by Everytown for Gun Safety, 89% of gun deaths per year in Maine were by firearm suicide, while 7% were homicides. Nationally, 61% of gun-related deaths in the US are due to suicide and 36% are homicides.

The city is close to the border with Quebec, Canada, and has a large proportion of French speakers.

Jason Levesque, mayor of the nearby city of Auburn, says there is "a significant amount of shock going on with people that were actually witnesses".

Levesque says many people have come to the reunification centre which has been opened to look for their loved ones.

"I just want them to be able to go home and hold their families and go to sleep," Levesque says.

Maine public safety official Mike Sauschuck earlier told reporters: "Card is considered armed and dangerous.

"He is a person of interest, however, and that's what we'll label them at moving forward until that changes. If people see him, they should not approach Card or make contact with him in any way."

Sauschuck added: "We have literally hundreds of police officers working around the state of Maine to investigate this case, to locate Mr Card, who, again, is a person of interest, and a person of interest only."

All municipal buildings will be closed in Lewiston today, according to local authorities.

In a statement shared on social media,, external the city government said that events in the city would be cancelled and non-emergency personnel should stay at home.

Authorities in Maine have not confirmed the number of people killed.

But multiple law enforcement officials told CBS News, the BBC's US partner, that at least 16 people were dead.

The officials also indicated the death toll could be higher than 20.

Lewiston City Councillor Robert McCarthy, citing a city administrator, told CNN that at least 22 people were killed.

Lewiston Police said it responded to two locations, a restaurant called Schemengees, and Sparetime Recreation, a bowling alley.

The two sites appear to be about four miles (6.5km), or a 10-minute drive, from each other.

Speaking to reporters, Michael Sauschuck, commissioner in Maine's Department of Public Safety, said the shootings began at 18:56 local time (22:56 GMT) and there had been "multiple casualties".

In a statement on X, police told residents: "Please stay inside your home with the doors locked."

Image source, EPA

The Central Maine Medical Center said it was reacting to a "mass casualty, mass shooter event" and was coordinating with other hospitals in the area to treat the injured.

Meanwhile schools in the district will be closed today, Lewiston Public Schools Superintendent Jake Langlais said in a statement.

Maine State Police also said on X that a reunification centre had been opened for people who have questions about loved ones.

The White House says President Biden has been briefed on the situation in Lewiston and will continue to receive updates.

President Biden has spoken to Maine Governor Janet Mills, Senators Angus King and Susan Collins, and Congressman Jared Golden and offered full federal support in the wake of the attack.

A statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has been briefed and was continuing to monitor the situation.

"DHS is working closely with our federal, state and local partners to support the Lewiston community," it said.

A US justice department statement said that federal agencies were assisting state and local law enforcement.

Image source, Lewiston Police

The suspect, Robert Card, is a firearms instructor who was trained by the US military in the city of Saco, Maine, according to a state police bulletin seen by the Associated Press.

The bulletin said he had spent time in a mental health centre in the summer of 2023 and had threatened to commit a shooting at the base.

The Androscoggin County Sheriff's Office released two images of a suspect, saying he was at large and asking for the public's help identifying him.

They showed a bearded man in a brown sweater carrying a firearm walking into a building.

Police also shared a photo of a white vehicle, saying its front bumper was believed to be painted black, and asked anybody who recognised it to contact police.

Billie Jayne Cooke, a shocked Lewiston resident, told the BBC she was just leaving a public event on Wednesday evening when she first heard of the attack and that the shooter was on the run.

"The entire ride home was just solid sirens, one siren after another. Helicopters, sirens, I've never heard so much activity in my life in this city.

"We have police from all over the state, from out of the state, coming up," said a visibly distressed Cooke.

"It's horrible. We always say it's not a matter of when but if, and you just don't think that's ever going to happen - and it did."

Cooke added that she called one of her sons as she was driving home.

"It just, it's crazy. I can't process this because it just seems so unimaginable."

Image source, Lewiston Police

At least 16 people are feared to have been killed in a mass shooting in the city of Lewiston in Maine.

The suspected gunman is still on the loose - police named Robert R. Card, 40, as a person of interest.

They said he should be considered "armed and dangerous" and have told residents of Lewiston and nearby Lisbon to shelter in place.

Police said they responded to two locations, a restaurant called Schemengees, and Sparetime Recreation, a bowling alley.

Jamie Whitehead
Live reporter

Hundreds of police officers are on the hunt for a gunman after a mass shooting in Lewiston in the US state of Maine, with at least 16 people feared to be killed.

I'll be keeping you updated with what's happening along with Barbara Tasch and Malu Cursino.

Stay with us.