An angry Maine resident who took shelter in his home after a mass shooter opened fire just one block from his home has said he is ‘locked and loaded’ while a bar owner at a second shooting site has revealed patrons had been playing cornhole.
Don Dostie, 61, shared a post to Facebook as police in Lewiston, Maine, continue to scour the area for the active shooter who was seen carrying a long rifle.
Dostie told AlertContent.com that he’s sheltering with his wife Dinny, 54, and said they’re ‘safe’ for the time being.
‘If any of these shooters come near my house, I’m not going to ask how they are doing,’ he finished.
Dostie said he heard shots in the distance and police cars flying past Main Street as well as multiple ambulances taking victims to hospital.
At least 22 people have been shot dead in a mass shooting and 50-60 people injured at numerous locations.
Police are also now seeking Robert Card, a 40-year-old Army reservist and firearms instructor from Bowdoin, who is a ‘person of interest’
Don Dostie, seen here with his wife, shared a post to Facebook as police in Lewiston, Maine, continue to scour the area for the active shooter
Robert Card, a 40-year-old Army reservist and firearms instructor, has been named as the suspect in the murder of 22 people in Lewiston, Maine on Wednesday
The 61-year-old said that the he and his wife often walk their dog near the bowling alley and heard that several other business were hit before they took shelter.
‘Most of us in Maine, we hunt, I’m a pretty good shot,’ Dostie said when asked what he would do if he came face to face with the shooter.
‘I heard sirens about a half hour ago and I thought I heard a few shots in the distance. We’re staying inside our house.’
Dostie also told CNN: ‘You’ve had these interviews with people over the country before, you just can’t believe it is going to happen in your hometown. It’s unreal.’
Card was armed with an AR 15-style rifle with laser optics when he burst into the bowling alley at 7:15pm to begin his rampage.
He was driving a 2013 white Subaru: Eric Samson, sheriff of Androscoggin County, announced at 11:20pm that law enforcement officers have found the vehicle in Lisbon, about seven miles southeast of Lewiston – but Card was not inside.
Mike Sauschuck, a law enforcement spokesperson in Lewiston, said Card ‘is considered armed and dangerous.’
Police audio said the two locations were Schemengee’s bar and grill, and Sparetime recreation center.
The Sun Journal reported that Kathy Lebel, the co-owner of Schemengees said patrons had been playing cornhole in the bar and grill when the shooting started.
She told the outlet: ‘It was just a fun night playing cornhole … it’s the last thing you’re expecting, right?
‘I still feel like this whole thing is a nightmare.’
Mack Bray, who works as an electrician, had been in the town for a union meeting when he stopped at the bar for a beer. He left just two hours prior to the shooting.
He told The Daily Beast: ‘That’s what is so shocking. There were a lot of people that were just, like, slaughtered not that far away from where we were discussing union business.’
St. Laurent told the Sun Journal that the first call, to Sparetime, came at around 7:16pm.
The gunman, wearing a brown hoodie, is seen in Lewiston on Wednesday night
Police issued a photo of this car which they believe belongs to Card. Sheriffs said at 11:20pm on Wednesday the car was found abandoned in the town of Lisbon, about seven miles away
The 61-year-old said that the he and his wife often walk their dog near the bowling alley and heard that several other business were hit before they took shelter
People are seen running from the scene of a mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine
Footage shared on social media showed police racing to the scene in the town of 36,000 people, 35 miles north of Portland and 35 miles south of the capital, Augusta.
Justin Juray, an owner of the bowling alley where the authorities said a shooting took place, told The New York Times that he had been present at the time of the shooting.
Juray had described the scene as ‘total chaos’, and said he could not speak further following the incident.
In a post to his Facebook, he said: ‘Just an update for everyone. Samantha [his wife] and I were able to get out unharmed. Please pray for everyone else that was less fortunate.’
Inside Bates College, a private liberal arts college in Lewiston, dozens of students were pictured sheltering on the top floor of the library.
Auburn resident Anne Kinney told the Sun Journal she had been out picking up a prescription in Lewiston when she was notified of the active shooter.
She said: ‘A loudspeaker in the store came on telling us that there was an active shooter situation and that all entrance [and]exit doors were being locked.
‘An employee brought some of us chairs to sit on. A local policeman eventually arrived and advised store folks to let us out one by one, if we wished, and then to dim store lights and completely close.’
Nichoel Wyman Arel, who managed to capture video of people fleeing for their lives, told CNN: ‘Roughly 20 people were downed and we left right away. Me and my youngest daughter had been on our way home from girl scouts.
Justin Juray, an owner of the bowling alley, is seen here with his wife Samantha. The two managed to make it safely away from the shooting
Nichoel Wyman Arel, who managed to capture video of people fleeing for their lives, told CNN she had seen people fleeing the scene covered in blood
‘I was zoomed in, we just saw a lot of campus staff, people getting patted down just to make sure they weren’t causing what was going on in there.
‘There was kids, that was probably the hardest part. Seeing families pour out of there knowing that happened in there while they were having a family night.’
Arel continued: ‘We did see some people as we were leaving the scene, we did see somebody who looked like they had blood all over them.
‘It was all kind of a blur, I wasn’t taking in a lot of the details.
On Wednesday, Lewiston schools had been hosting parent-teacher conferences when they were put into lockdown.
Superintendent of Lewiston Public Schools, Jake Langlais said: ‘All, please get to a safe place if you are at or near a school for conferences we are going into lockdowns.
‘I will provide more information as soon as it is available and appropriate. Right now, we need to let law enforcement do what they need to do.’