Police cars escort an ambulance after a shooter opened fire inside the Pensacola Air Base yesterday. Photo / AP
Police cars escort an ambulance after a shooter opened fire inside the Pensacola Air Base yesterday. Photo / AP
A mass shooting at a US naval base has left several people dead and many more injured for the second time in two days.
Minutes before the deadly attack – thought to have been carried out by Second Lieutenant Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani – an eerie message was posted from a Twitter account using the same name.
According to Storyful, the English-language message (posted to the account @M7MD_SHAMRANI in the form of three images) was addressed to the American people, and stated: "I don't hate you because your freedoms, I hate you because every day you supporting [sic], funding and committing crimes not only against Muslims but also humanity."
The message signed off by telling the American people: "You will not be safe until we live it as reality in pleastain [sic], and American troops get out of our lands."
At roughly 3.30pm (Storyful could not confirm the exact minute) local time, the account was suspended by Twitter.
The suspected gunman shared a disturbing post minutes before the attack. Photo / Supplied
"I'm against evil," the suspected gunman posted. Photo / Supplied
"How many more body-bags are American families willing to receive?" Photo / Supplied
The ominous post (along with the Twitter account) was suspended shortly after the shooting took place. Photo / Supplied
The latest deadly shooting unfolded when the gunman opened fire in a classroom building at Naval Air Station Pensacola, in Florida, on Friday around 7am local time (13h00 NZT on Saturday).
The shooting suspect was an aviation student from Saudi Arabia and authorities are investigating if the shooting was terrorism-related, a US official said.
However, a national security expert from the Heritage Foundation warned against making an immediate link to terrorism.
"If there is some connection to terrorism, well, then, that's that," Charles "Cully" Stimson said. "But let's not assume that because he was a Saudi national in their air force and he murdered our people, that he is a terrorist."
Stimson said it was also possible that the shooter was "a disgruntled evil individual who was mad because he wasn't going to get his pilot wings, or he wasn't getting the qualification ratings that he wanted, or he had a beef with somebody, or there was a girlfriend involved who slighted him."
At least four people were killed – including the shooter – and seven others were injured, according to the US Navy.
FBI personnel from Pensacola, Jacksonville and Mobile, Alabama, are responding to the station, an FBI spokeswoman said.
About 45 minutes after the first shots rang out, the Escambia County Sheriff's Office confirmed on Facebook that the shooter was dead.
"Multiple injured personnel have been transported to local hospitals. We will continue to work closely with law enforcement agencies," Lieutenant Commander Megan Isaac said in a statement.
Baptist Health Care received eight patients from the shooting, according to spokeswoman Kathy Bowers. One of those patients later died, in addition to another three who were killed at the base. She said no further information was immediately available on their conditions.
Emergency responders at the Naval Air Base Station in Pensacola, Florida. Photo / AP
Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan told reporters attending the scene "was like being on the set of a movie".
"This doesn't happen in Escambia County. It doesn't happen in Pensacola. It doesn't happen to our friends and neighbours who are members of the US Navy," Mr Morgan said. "But it did, and it has."
Among those injured were two officers shot in an exchange of gunfire with the shooter, authorities said. They are expected to survive.
Base commander Captain Timothy Kinsella Jr. said the base will remain closed until further notice.
Jeff Bergosh, a facilities manager at the base, had just arrived at the front gates when the station was put on lockdown, trapping thousands of workers in their cars.
"It's been pretty surreal," Mr Bergosh told MSNBC. "We're just praying for all the victims.
"When this happened was prime-time rush hour for all the base employees," Bergosh said. "It was chaos with the ambulances and the police vehicles screaming by with the sirens. We knew pretty quickly that this was a pretty serious event."
Naval Air Station Pensacola employs more than 16,000 military and 7,400 civilian personnel, according to the base's website.
Vice President Mike Pence tweeted: "Saddened to hear of the horrible shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola & continuing to monitor the situation. Praying for the victims & their families & we commend the first responders for their swift action in taking down the shooter & getting those on base to safety."
The fatal incident comes just two days after an active-duty sailor opened fire with his M4 service rifle at the Pearl Harbour Naval Shipyard in Hawaii, killing two and wounding a third before turning the gun on himself.
The shooter was later identified as 22-year-old Petty Officer Gabriel Romero.
Romero was a crew member aboard the submarine USS Columbia, which was dry-docked at the shipyard for maintenance.
The President has been briefed on the shooting at Pensacola Naval Air Station/Forest Sherman Field and is monitoring the situation.
