“That was the last conversation,” his mother said. “He’s coming,” Justice texted, adding later: “He has us, and he’s in here with us.”
Justice told his mom he and others ran into the bathroom to hide. Mina Justice said her son Eddie was inside the club and texted her when the gunshots erupted, the Associated Press reported. According to Dyer, there were five to eight hostages in one room with the shooter and an additional 15 to 20 in a separate room at the time when police entered. Personnel could not go in immediately as explosives were suspected to have been hidden. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer told CNN the death toll jumped from 20 to 50 as additional victims were found inside the club. Most of the estimated 320 people inside escaped, but an unknown number were taken hostage in a bathroom. According to accounts from the scene, the gunman traded gunfire with a police officer before entering Pulse at 2 a.m.
