At least 22 dead and dozens injured in series of shootings across US

At least 22 people were killed and dozens injured in a series of shootings in the northeastern United States, with the gunman still at large, local authorities said. It is the deadliest incident of the year.

“There is a shooter in the town of Lewiston,” the Maine State Police said on the social network Facebook on Tuesday evening (local time).

The suspect “remains at large,” said Androscoggin County police, who released photos showing a white man wearing a brown shirt and dark blue pants armed with a semi-automatic rifle.

Authorities identified the suspect as Robert Card, who was seen on video surveillance entering a bowling alley with a semi-automatic weapon.

Card is a certified firearms instructor and member of the U.S. Army Reserve, CNN reported, citing law enforcement sources.

The shootings took place at three different locations, including a bowling alley, a restaurant and a logistics center at a Walmart supermarket, CNN reported.

“We have 22 confirmed deaths and many, many injuries,” Lewiston Mayor Robert McCarthy told CNN.

Local authorities asked residents to stay at home with their doors locked and also published a photo of a white car, calling for contact with citizens who recognize the vehicle.

Public schools in Lewiston, the state’s second-largest city with a population of about 36,000, will be closed today, a school district official announced on the social network X (formerly Twitter).

The state’s governor, Democrat Janet Mills, said she was aware of the situation and asked all area residents to follow authorities’ recommendations, according to a post on X.

The White House indicated that US President Joe Biden is already aware and is awaiting news from the scene.

In the US, one in three adults owns at least one firearm and nearly one in two adults lives in a home with a firearm.

According to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA), an independent group that collects information on gun incidents, more than 15,000 people have been killed by gun violence in the country since the start of the year, not including suicides.