Two people were killed and 11 others wounded Sunday when a video game tournament competitor went on a shooting rampage before turning the gun on himself in the northern Florida city of Jacksonville, local police said. Sheriff Mike Williams named the suspect of the shooting at a Madden 19 American football eSports tournament as 24-year-old David Katz from Baltimore, Maryland. “There were three deceased individuals at the scene, one of those being the suspect, who took his own life,” Williams told reporters. He said local fire and rescue transported nine victims -- seven of whom had gunshot wounds -- to local hospitals, while another two people who were shot took their own transportation to hospital. Williams said Katz was a competitor in the eSports tournament and used “at least one handgun” to carry out the shooting. Madden is a hugely popular multi-player video game based on the National Football League, which in a statement said it was “shocked and deeply saddened by the horrific tragedy.” The tournament at The Landing entertainment and shopping complex -- a regional qualifier for finals in Las Vegas with a $25,000 prize -- took place at the GLHF Game Bar. Sheriff Williams said the shooting occurred inside the Chicago Pizza restaurant in the complex around 1:30 pm (1730 GMT). Earlier on Twitter, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office had urged people hiding in locked areas of The Landing to stay in place and call 911 to make their location known. ‘Traumatized and devastated’ In disturbing footage apparently captured as part of a livestream on video gaming website Twitch, several gunshots could be heard in the background, before the stream disconnected. Twitch removed the video, but it remained available on social media. Police said they were in possession of footage capturing the incident. “This is a horrible situation, and our deepest sympathies go out to all involved,” Madden’s creator, EA Sports, said in a statement. CompLexity Gaming, one of the gaming teams, said its player Drini Gjoka was grazed on the hand. “We’re obviously shocked and saddened by this afternoon’s events. Our player, Drini, was hit in the thumb but is going to be fine. He managed to escape and run down the street to a nearby gym,” director Jason Lake told AFP. Gjoka tweeted: “I will never take anything for granted ever again. Life can be cut short in a second.” Another player, “DubDotDUBBY,” said a bullet had grazed his head. “I feel fine, just a scratch on my head. Traumatized and devastated,” he tweeted. Germany-based SK Gaming also confirmed their player known by the handle “JoelCP_” was safe. “Our thoughts are with everyone that had to be part of such a horrendous event,” it said. The professional gamer known as “oLARRY2K,” of Bucks Gaming, was said to have been shot in the chest, according to several social media users, including one describing herself as his mother. ‘We cannot accept this’ Survivors of February’s high school shooting in Parkland, Florida, expressed sorrow at news of another mass shooting in the state. “Once again, my heart hurts and all of me is so angry. We cannot accept this as our reality,” said Delaney Tarr, one of the organizers of the student-led March for Our Lives movement. Florida has suffered multiple shootings in recent years: 49 were killed in a June 2016 attack on a gay nightclub, while 17 were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School earlier this year. Florida Senator Marco Rubio said that the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were investigating Sunday’s shooting. Florida Governor Rick Scott said he had offered state support in the aftermath, and that President Donald Trump had offered “any federal resources needed.”<doc-sep>Photo: Brittney Donovan/CBS47-FOX30/Twitter The scene near the site of the shooting on Sunday afternoon. A gunman opened fire at a video-game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida, on Sunday afternoon, killing two people and injuring 11. Authorities say the gunman then fatally shot himself. Jacksonville County Sheriff Mike Williams identified the gunman as David Katz, a 24-year-old man from Baltimore. Williams said authorities have yet to determine Katz’s motive, or if he knew the victims. The shooting took place at GLHF Game Bar, which was hosting the tournament, in an area called Jacksonville Landing. In the aftermath of the shooting, police roped off the area and cautioned media and pedestrians to stay away as they combed through the area, looking for people who had hidden at the sound of the shots. The moment of the shooting was captured on a livestream of the tournament, broadcast on the popular platform Twitch. As shots rang out, players abandoned their game and a screams could be heard in the background. madden tournament getting shot up on twitch pic.twitter.com/3Jk8QmZkiy — ANAKRON (@Anakron199X) August 26, 2018 At least one competitor at the event, in which high-level gamers play the newest version of the juggernaut Madden series of NFL-inspired video games, shared their experience on Twitter. The tourney just got shot up. Im leavinng and never coming back — Drini Gjoka (@Drini) August 26, 2018 I am literally so lucky. The bullet hit my thumb — Drini Gjoka (@Drini) August 26, 2018 Worst day of my life — Drini Gjoka (@Drini) August 26, 2018 I will never take anything for granted ever again. Life can be cut short in a second — Drini Gjoka (@Drini) August 26, 2018 Eleven people were treated at local hospitals, including nine with gunshot wounds and two who were injured while fleeing the scene. The gunshot victims were all in stable condition as of Sunday night. Florida has become ground zero for America’s gun-violence epidemic. Since June 2016, it has seen the massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, a mass shooting at the Fort Lauderdale airport, the high-school shooting in Parkland, which galvanized the gun-reform movement, and now Sunday’s carnage. Florida Governor Rick Scott, who signed new gun safety legislation after Parkland, spoke to reporters outside a Jacksonville hospital on Sunday night. “We have got to change, we’ve got to really stop and say to ourselves, ‘There’s something wrong,’” said Scott. “Why are young men willing to give up their lives? Or why don’t they value somebody else’s life? We’ve got to figure this out. We don’t ever want this to happen again.” The Republican governor, who is running for the U.S. Senate, did not propose any gun measures on Sunday night, and he ignored reporters’ questions about new legislation.<doc-sep>Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement it was "not aware of any Australians being affected by the shooting in Jacksonville, Florida on 26 August." Williams said a single handgun had been confirmed as used in the shooting. Police investigate the scene of a multiple shooting on Sunday. Credit:AP He also confirmed the location of the shooting as Chicago Pizza, which shares a front door with the GLHF Game Bar. Just before the shots were heard on the livestream, a red laser dot appeared on the chest of one of the players, who was wearing white headphones and a red sweatshirt. The video of the players then disappeared. Sujeil Lopez was at home in the Tampa Bay area, in Florida, when she got a call that her son, who goes by Larry, 25, had been shot. "I have to get to him. I am four hours away from him and I have to get to my son," Lopez said on the phone. Police barricade a street near Jacksonville Landing in Jacksonville, Florida. Credit:AP "He was shot three times, once on the nipple, once on his hand and somewhere else," Lopez said. She did not know his condition. Her son is a professional video game player for the Bucks Gaming team, according to his Twitter profile. A professional video game organisation, compLexity Gaming, said on Twitter that it had a player at the tournament who "suffered a small injury" when a bullet grazed his hand but that "he is away from the scene." The player, whose name was listed as Drini Gjoka on Twitter, tweeted on Sunday that the "tourney just got shot up." "I am literally so lucky," he said. "The bullet hit my thumb." In another tweet he said he would "never take anything for granted ever again." On Twitter, the sheriff's office said there had been a mass shooting at the Jacksonville Landing, a collection of restaurant and stores. "Stay far away from the area. The area is not safe at this time," it said in the tweet. In another tweet three minutes later, the office said: "We can't stress enough to stay away. Many blocks away." The office added in another tweet: "We are finding many people hiding in locked areas at The Landing. We ask you to stay calm, stay where you are hiding. SWAT is doing a methodical search inside The Landing. We will get to you. Please don't come running out." Outside of the Jacksonville Landing in Jacksonville, Florida. Credit:AP Memorial Hospital in Jacksonville was treating three patients, who were in stable condition, a spokesman, Peter Moberg, said. Another hospital, UF Health Jacksonville, was treating six patients, one of them in serious condition and five in good condition, Dan Leveton, a spokesman, said. The shooting happened at the GLHF Game Bar, which was hosting a tournament that viewers could watch on Twitch, a gaming network owned by Amazon. A video clip shared on Twitter, which has since been taken down, showed the football video game Madden on a television screen. Someone playing as the Atlanta Falcons appeared to have scored, and was kicking off. Tournament commentators remarked that the players were so good that it would not be easy to knock anyone out of the tournament. "Run run run run run pass run run run," one viewer said in a comment stream as the game unfolded. Then the sound of gunfire begins. Several shots are heard, one after another. Then as the shots sound, commenters repeatedly said "oh my God." "Is there a shooting?" a viewer asked. A still of the live-streamed tournament, right, before shots rang out on the video. Credit:GLHF Game Bar "That's a gun," said another. The video then cut off. The bar was scheduled to host a qualifying round for the Madden NFL Championship Series, a gaming tournament. Madden NFL 19 is the 30th installment of the popular NFL video game series, which has sold over 100 million copies. Developed by EA Sports, its release each summer — just before the start of the football season — is practically a holiday for many NFL and video game fans. Madden NFL 19 was released about two weeks ago. The shooting took place at the southeast regional qualifying tournament for the Madden NFL 19 Classic tournament, which advertised a $US5000 grand prize and is open to anybody. Part of the broader Madden NFL Championship series of tournaments, the top two finishers were to receive a berth in the finals in October. The tournament, like most esports tournaments big and small, was being streamed on Twitch, the Amazon-owned live streaming platform used heavily by gamers. Spectators watch the games, many hoping to pick up skills and tips from more experienced gamers. EA Sports said in a tweet: "We are aware of an incident at a sanctioned Madden Championship Series competition in Jacksonville. We are working with authorities to gather facts at this stage."<doc-sep>
FLORIDA (REUTERS, AFP) - A gunman killed two people and wounded several others on Sunday (Aug 26) when he opened fire at a video game tournament that was being streamed online from a restaurant in Jacksonville, Florida, police and local media said. Police named the killer as David Katz, 24, from Baltimore, Maryland. Katz shot himself dead at the scene. “There were three deceased individuals at the scene, one of those being the suspect, who took his own life,” Sheriff Mike Williams told a news conference. “There were nine victims transported by JFRD (local fire and rescue) to area hospitals. Some of those have gunshot wounds. There were two additional gunshot victims that self-transported themselves to local hospitals.” He declined to comment on what led to the third major mass shooting to hit Florida in the last two years. Some reports said the gunman started shooting after he got angry following a loss at the tournament. Dozens of ambulances and police cars flooded into The Jacksonville Landing, a waterfront dining, entertainment and shopping site in the city's downtown, after several shots rang out on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The shooting took place during a regional qualifier for the Madden 19 online game tournament at the GLHF Game Bar inside a Chicago Pizza restaurant, according to the venue's website. The bar was livestreaming the competition when the gunfire started, according to video of the stream shared on social media. In the video, players can be seen reacting to the shots and cries can be heard before the footage cuts off. One Twitter user, Drini Gjoka, said he was taking part in the tournament and was shot in the thumb. "Worst day of my life," he wrote on Twitter. "I will never take anything for granted ever again. Life can be cut short in a second." I will never take anything for granted ever again. Life can be cut short in a second — Drini (@Drini) August 26, 2018 The Los Angeles Times reported the shooter was a gamer who was competing in the tournament and lost. Citing messages from another player in the room, the Times said the gunman appeared to target several victims before killing himself. Reuters could not immediately confirm that account of events. The Florida shooting occurs amid a debate about US gun laws that was given fresh impetus by the massacre in February of 17 people at a high school in Parkland, Florida. Two years ago, a gunman killed 49 people at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. The sheriff's office said many people were transported to hospital, and its deputies found many others hiding in locked areas at The Landing. Six victims were taken to Jacksonville's UF Health Hospital, five of them in stable condition and one in serious condition, hospital staff said. A spokesman for Jacksonville's Memorial Hospital said it was treating three victims, all of whom were in stable condition. Mass shooting at the Jacksonville Landing. Stay far away from the area. The area is not safe at this time. STAY AWAY #TheLandingMassShooting — Jax Sheriff's Office (@JSOPIO) August 26, 2018 We are finding many people hiding in locked areas at The Landing. We ask you to stay calm, stay where you are hiding. SWAT is doing a methodical search inside The Landing. We will get to you. Please don’t come running out. #TheLandingMassShooting https://t.co/qBJvkaO7xT — Jax Sheriff's Office (@JSOPIO) August 26, 2018 Jacksonville, on Florida's Atlantic Coast, is about 55km south of the Georgia state line. Florida Governor Rick Scott, a Republican who is challenging longtime Democratic Senator Bill Nelson in November's election, said he had offered to provide local authorities with any state resources they might need. Mr Marco Rubio, US senator from Florida, said both the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were coordinating with local authorities to provide assistance. President Donald Trump has been briefed and is monitoring the situation in Jacksonville, the White House said. Reacting to news of the shooting during the tournament involving its game, Madden 19 maker Electronic Arts Inc said it was working with the authorities to gather facts. "This is a horrible situation, and our deepest sympathies go out to all involved," the company said on Twitter.