13th, 2016. From nbc news, this is a special edition of today, terror in orlando. Matt lauer live from orlando, and Savannah Guthrie from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. Good morning. Im matt lauer in orlando. And savannah is in new york city. Were going to bring you live a report from officials. The scene behind me, the pulse nightclub, just a couple hundred yards down the street on the right. Thats where the worst mass shooting in u. S. History took place in the very early hours on sunday morning. It must be a community that is just in shock, actually. I think the whole country is in shock this morning, matt. Its almost too much to bear. 50 people killed. 53 injured. It just breaks your heart. You know, you almost want to take that number and leave it up on the screen for the entire show of 50. It really lets you understand the magnitude of this. Lets get to overnight developments. As we said, the death toll stands at 50. Another 53 people wounded when that gunman opened fire inside pulse. Its a very popular gay nightclub here in orlando. Again, the shooting is the deadliest in u. S. History. Overnight, fbi investigators started shooting the home of the gunman, omar mateen. And isis is calling mateen one of its soldiers in this country. Mateen pledged his loyalty to the terror group in a 911 call, moments before the shooting. From the white house, president obama called the shooting an act of terror and an act of hate. And the president renewed his call for tighter gun laws. And mourners gathered at vigils all across the country, to honor the shooting victims. In new york city, people left candles and left flawers before the nightclub. Lester holt joins me in orlando. Good morning to you. Good morning, matt. The situation was chaotic as it was desperate. Think about it. Police responding, wanting to neutralize the shooter before anyone else was killed. You had people coming out injured. The ems system overwhelmed. Not enough ambulances. And people trying to account for missing friends and loved ones. With dozens of the dead still unidentified this morning, families are desperate for any word about their loved ones. Now, the world is asking why 29yearold omar mateen opened fire at a nightclub in florida. Late sunday, the gunmans exwife called him physically and emotionally abusive. He was mentally unable and ill. He was obviously disturbed. It started at 2 00 sunday morning, when police say mateen approached pulse, a gay nightclub in the heart of downtown orlando. Armed with a handgun and ar15 rifle, like this one. Oh, my god. Reporter mateen made his way inside and opened fire on a crowd of more than 300 people. Some of the patrons hit in be bathrooms. Others ran. Bomb squads and s. W. A. T. Teams arrived within the hour. He wasnt stopping. Reporter those who couldnt escape, became trapped, held hostage by the gunman. One mother received Text Messages from her son, eddie, who was hiding with several others. I got the text. And he said, call the police. I called the dispatcher and reported there was a shooting at a club. Reporter from inside the bathroom, eddie wrote, hes coming. Im going to die. When mina asked if the shooter was in the bathroom with him, eddie responded, yes. It would be the last text mina would receive from her son. Finally, at 5 00 a. M. , police stormed the building. The sound of gunfire ringing into the streets. And outside, chaos. The wounded carried out by friends and bystanders. Tell me where my son is. If hes been shot. If hes dead. Reporter the fbi says they investigated mateen on two previous occasions. And just moments before the carnage began, he called 911, pledging his allegiance to isis. In washington, president obama addressed the nation. We know enough to say that this was an act of terror and an act of hate. Reporter last night, at the 70th annual tony awards senseless acts of tragedy remind us that nothing here is promised. Reporter hamilton star, honored the victims with a home. Love lasts longer. And love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love, cannot be killed or swept aside. We shall live in peace reporter as the country rallies around the lgbt community, vigils were held, remembering those lost. Like 34yearold edward sotemayor. And kimberly k. J. Morris. A friend said she didnt live her life according to anyones guidelines. She was simply kimberly. And the death toll, we saw it rise dramatically at one point because they had to take their time and go through and makes sure there were no explosives there. The vehicles are there. Theyre conducting an investigation. Its an active crime scene in there. Want to give people an idea how the major newspapers are handling this story. Gunman attacks gay nightclub leaving 50 dead, worst shooting on american soil. The local paper shows this picture. Our community will heal. I want to turn to someone at the pulse nightclub when the shooting started, chris hansen. Good morning to you. How are you doing . Im pretty good. You had a day to let this sink in. Have you gotten your head around it . Still, its challenging. I havent had much sleep yet. Maybe three hours since everything happened. People are seeing the aerial views of the pulse nightclub. Can you tell us where you were in comparison to the rest of the room. When you walk into the door, theres a v. I. P. Lounge area. I was on the edge, by the bathroom. So, towards the back patio. Kind of facing the bar. As the gunman came in, he was shooting towards the dance floor, which is this way. I just, like it was easier for me to get out, versus everybody else. The music was bounding. Some confused the gunfire for the beat of the music. How long did it take to learn there was nothing normal . After a couple of shots. You realize, this isnt a song. You hear the screaming and the blood. The guy next to me false over. Oh, look behind me. And you see those in the v. I. P. Area going down. Other people going down. I go down. I got to crawl out of here. I have to get out of here somehow. I wasnt running. If people were standing, im not going to be a moving target. I dropped and i crawled until i got to the cement of the patio. There were people tripping over you, stepping on you, trying to get to the door. The back door. The privacy fence was knocked over. And everybody was scrambling out. A young lady i know next to you, who was badly wounded. Others. How did she do . Im not quite sure. I have no idea who any i didnt get her last name. I dont remember it. She may have told me. I asked her other things. She was having a hard time catching her brett. It was an arm wound, but she was bleeding and when it doesnt matter where youre shot. When youre trying to breathe and youre going through the shocking moment, you have to be there for them. I tried to keep her awake and alert. You watched the coverage of these kinds of shootings from other cities around the world. Did you ever try to imagine what you would do in a similar circumstance . Actually, no. My dad was based in cheyenne, wyoming, when columbine happened. And i was there. And later, going on, elementary school, i was in ohio. It was difficult. And then, coming here and actually being a part of an actual shooting and seeing that assault weapons were used, its not something that i would wake up and say, hey, lets get dodge today. Have you accounted for all of your friends . I didnt know anybody in here. Im new here. It was the first night at the bar. It was latin night. And i dont know spanish. But youre able to move with it, even if you dont know language. I know you need some sleep. Thank you for spending some time with us this morning. Thank you. Appreciate it. My best to you. Thank you. Were learning more about the gunman, 29yearold omar mateen. A man that had been on the fbis radar in the past. We go outside his home in ft. Pierce, florida. Its a twohour drive to our south. Good morning to you. Reporter Law Enforcement pulled out of here a couple of hours ago. Were getting a first look at omar mateens condominium. He got a degree in criminal justice technology. His exwife and a former colleague say he was obsessed with the police force. But he never became a police officer. He became an angry, volatile and unpredictable man. Omar mateen was an american citizen. A muslim, born in new york, from parents from afghanistan. And in a picture with his wife and young son, they look happy. His exwife says she realized how troubled he was during their brief marriage, eight years ago. He was bipolar and he would get mad out of nowhere. Thats when i worried about my safety. After a few months, he abused me physically. Reporter she turned to her family for help. My family rescued me. The night they were there, they had to pull me out of his arms. Reporter she says she hasnt spoken to him in seven years. The fbi had its own concerns. Investigating mateen twice in the last four years, for possible links to violent extremism. But nothing turned up in either case. And the fbi now says, there was no indication she was planning an attack. He was scary. He was scary . Scary in a concerning way. It wasnt at times. It was all the time. Daniel gilroy, a former police officer, worked with mateen as a Security Guard in port st. Liucie. He would have a violent outbreak of rage. He said his rants were often racist. He would say im going to kill all these ns. He said that all the time. Reporter referring to black people. Reporter gilroy said he reported him to supervisors. Mateen responded in calling and texting gilroy incessantly. 18 was one day. Reporter 18 Text Messages in a single day . Right. That went unreplied. Reporter he and his family grew scared of mateen. And ultimately, he quit. Do you wish you had raised the issue with other people . Now, i do. I feel responsibility. There was no shock. I feel responsible. I felt like, i was a coward, 50 people are dead. Thats the way i feel. Reporter the Security Company that mateen and gilroy worked for, confirmed that mateen worked for them since 2007. In a statement, they added, we are shocked and saddened by the tragic event that occurred at the orlando nightclub. They say theyre cooperating with fbi and other Law Enforcement. Matt, back to you. Stephanie, thank you very much. Also this morning, were hearing from omar mateens father. He said he was shocked by his sons action. And kerry joins us from ft. Pierce. Good morning to you. Reporter good morning. In a search for answers in omar mateen, we spoke to his father. And there may lie some clues in what his father says and has done. By way of background, his father is politically active. He was recently in washington where he met with members of the state department, as well as other political leaders while in washington. The elder mateen, who made his trip in april, is seen in social media posts. Posts in front of the state department. He is from afghanistan. And he has written openly on social media about his support for the taliban, which, like isis, is an Extremist Islamic Group in afghanistan. The gunmans father posted a video on facebook, apologizing for his sons actions in his native language. He called his son, a good boy. Welleducated and living a dignified life. But also included this statement. The punishment for homosexuality is upon god. And he will decide on them, not humans. Just hours earlier, he spoke at length with nbc news about what his son did. What triggered your son . I am as shocked as you are. I tonight approve this. In the United States, anyone has the freedom and the choice to run his life how he likes to run his life. And nobody has a right to do anything or impose anything. So, i dont approve of him, what he did. Did you know that he had purchased these weapons . No. I wish i did know. I wish i did know. If i did know he purchased weapons, this would not have happened. This is hard to understand. You saw your son before he went on this rampage. Exactly. He was one person. And this person who did a murderous rampage, he became another person. 2 00, he became another person. Reporter did he talk about homosexuality . We were in miami, he saw the behavior of one couple. And he got ticked off. Reporter what did he say . Nothing. Just look at this. Reporter what did you say . There were two guys kissing in front of a family and kids. My heart, my mind goes for all of the people who lost a loved ones. And the families, the mothbroth and sisters that got injured, i wish them a speedy recovery. I hope this never happens to our great land, United States of america. American people are loving people. And i believe in forgiveness. And i reporter you believe theres forgiveness here . I hope so because what my son did is a horrible thing. Reporter mateen did not get confirmation where his son, omar, was the gunman, until the fbi visited his home. The fbi came in, did an interview with him and his wife, took his computer, and left. Savannah . Kerry sanders, thank you. Lets get more on the gunman and this investigation. Nbcs justice correspondent, pete williams, is here. Hes been on the phone with his sources, almost nonstop. Pete, good morning. Whats the latest you can tell us . Good morning, savannah. The fbi said that agents interviewed omar mateen three times. Put him under surveillance for a while. Agents found nothing to indicate he was on a path to terrorism. Three years ago, coworkers campaigned he was boasting about having terror connections. A year later, after he had contact with another man who became a suicide bomber in syria, agents interviewed mateen again and concluded that contact was minimal. No sign of an actual terrorist connection. And none of the encounters disqualified him from buying guns because he was never convicted of any crime. In the past week or so, the atf says he bought two guns, an ar15 rifle and a 9 millimeter handgun, two of the most commonly owned weapons in america. Agents searched his apartment in the city of ft. Pierce, about 120 miles from orlando, looking for anything that would indicate when he was plan his shooting. But Officials Say nothing definite about that. And Law EnforcementOfficials Say they found no evidence so suggest that he was actually in communication with terrorists overseas. In other words, nothing to suggest that this was a foreigndirected attack. And so far, no indication that anybody else was involved in the shooting, giving him help or egging him on. Several hours after the attack, the isis propaganda arm claimed that mateen is one of its soldiers. But that statement came after it was publicly reported that mateen called 911 during the shooting and pledged support to isis. Pete williams, with the latest on the investigation. Well have more on the shootings in a moment. For the moment, lets turn to al and get our first check of the weather. We have Severe Weather to talk about in texas, between dallas and waco. I45, theres flooding and roads closed. We have a risk of Severe Weather, from denver to north platte. 4 Million People at risk. Tomorrow, an enhanced risk from omaha, kansas city, and colombia. Two inchhail possible. And on wednesday, the biggest threat, from chicago, st. Louis, columbus, louisville, up to ann arb arbor. 36 Million People at risk for Severe Weather. Mostly winds, hail and down im going to make this as simple as possible for you. You can go ahead and stick with that complicated credit card that limits where you earn bonus cash back. Or. You can get the quicksilver card from capital one. Quicksilver earns you unlimited 1. 5 cash back on every purchase, everywhere. I shouldnt have to ask. Whats in your wallet . Good morning, im meteorologist bill henley. A Beautiful Day ahead. Lots of sunshine and a warm afternoon. As the temperatures go up, the humidity coming down. Nice and comfortable. 82 degrees for somerton. Bright sunshine for the suburbs and the Lehigh Valley. And for new jersey, into the very low 80s for vineland and haddonfield. At the shore, not much cooler. Northwesterly winds bring the temperatures up nicely for Atlantic City and lynnwood. Sunny skies in delaware, dover and wilmington, up to 80 degrees. Have a great day. Thats your latest weather. Savannah . Al, thank you. Coming up, the fallout over the orlando shooting. Were seeing oning on the campa trail, the presumptive president ial nominees, donald trump and Hillary Clinton, will join us just ahead. And more on the investigation into this worst mass shooting in u. S. History. Police are about to hold a News Conference. Well bring that to you live. First, on a monday morning, this is today on nbc. You scratch my back, ill scratch yours. You know what it means. So does pat toomey. Toomey got rich working on wall street. Then he got elected and kept working, for wall street. Voting to let banks continue their risky practices. And supporting huge tax breaks for millionaires, but higher taxes on working families. No wonder hes gotten millions from wall street. Pat toomey. Right for wall street. Wrong for pennsylvania. Senate majority pac is responsible for the content of this advertising. Try micellar water want a dfrom garnier skinactive. The micelles attract dirt like a magnet to 1. Remove makeup 2. Cleanse and 3. Soothe. 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Lets get our forecast from nbc 10 meteorologist bill henley. A nice cool start this morning. Definitely cooler than yesterday morning. 56 in the suburbs, 61 in philadelphia. Wilmington, the temperature, just updated, 63 degrees. Been doing some watering athe frawley stadium. A good idea. Well see no wet weather, not today. 73 degrees at 1 00 this afternoon. We will not reach the 0