A Friday evening of unwinding, dinner and cocktails at an upscale Midtown shopping enclave was shattered by an unidentified assailant who walked into a yoga studio and began shooting.
Two people were fatally wounded before he turned the gun on himself and killed himself. At least five others were wounded, Tallahassee Police Chief Michael DeLeo said.
The gunman has been tentatively identified but his name has not been released, DeLeo.
"The main focus for us is positively identifying the suspect and what his link to our victims is," DeLeo said at a 10 p.m. briefing.
Hours earlier, officials reported one person was in critical condition at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, three were in serious condition, and two in good condition, said hospital spokeswoman Danielle Buchanan. It is unclear which of the victims died. One of those taken to the hospital died, officials said.
City spokeswoman Alison Faris confirmed the shooter at Hot Yoga Tallahassee died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after the incident at the yoga studio located on the second floor the Betton Place shopping complex on the corner of Thomasville and Bradford roads.
There were 11 people signed up for the 5:30 p.m. hot yoga flow class and one canceled earlier in the day, a source said. The class instructor is said to have been uninjured. The 911 call came in at 5:37 p.m.
City Commissioner Scott Maddox was among the many city officials who immediately went to the scene.
"In my public service career, I have had to be on some bad scenes. This is the worst. Please pray," Maddox posted on Facebook.
PHOTOS: Gunman opens fire at Florida yoga studio
A gubernatorial campaign interrupted
Alex Redding was in the Bar at Betton downstairs at the shopping center when a woman ran in hyperventilating followed by a man with blood on his head. Redding said two to three other people entered the bar seeking help and said a tall man with a beard was inside the Hot Yoga studio acting strange and began shooting during the class.
The man with blood on his head told the patrons he tried to stop the shooter but was pistol-whipped before the man shot himself.
The incident swiftly interrupted the gubernatorial campaign of Mayor Andrew Gillum who was joined by former President Brack Obama earlier in the day in South Florida. Gillum tweeted he was "deeply appreciative of law enforcement's quick response to the shooting at the yoga facility in Tallahassee today."
"No act of gun violence is acceptable," he wrote. "I'm in close communication with law enforcement officials and will be returning to Tallahassee tonight."
About three hours after the shooting, Gillum's Republican rival Ron DeSantis tweeted: "The news of the shooting in Tallahassee is heartbreaking. Casey and I are praying for the families of the victim whose life was tragically taken tonight and those taken to the hospital with injuries."
When the crime was reported, dozens of police cruisers and other emergency vehicles raced to the scene from all over the city. Shortly after the shooting, Gov. Rick Scott, who is running for U.S. Senate, spoke to DeLeo, Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil and Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Rick Swearingen.
"I have been briefed by FDLE and local law enforcement regarding the shooting in Tallahassee," he tweeted. "FDLE is on the scene and assisting local police. I will remain in constant communication with law enforcement. We have offered state assistance."
Witness accounts: 'Pop, pop, pop'
Megan Nixon was eating downstairs at Riccardo’s Restaurant when she heard the commotion at the yoga studio upstairs.
“We heard pop, pop, pop. It sounded intense,” Nixon said. About 30 seconds later, she saw two young women run into Bar of Betton next door. Then, she saw a guy, bloodied, run in.
“The gun shot six or seven times. I saw five different ambulances picking people up," she said. "It’s scary it’s so close to home.”
Nixon said the owner of the restaurant locked the door to protect those inside. She struggled to understand the events that interrupted what was supposed to be a family evening out.
"It’s so terrible. Why would he have skipped all the other business and go up to the Yoga studio?” Nixon asked. “It’s terrible. It’s hard when you have a 2-year-old. I hate this for Tallahassee. I hate this for these girls."
Shanta Combs was sitting at the Bar on Betton having drinks with her boyfriend and a friend when the chaos erupted.
“It’s a little surreal still," she said. “It’s still hard to wrap your brain around, you know?”
Everything happened so quickly, Combs said. First, the girl ran in breathing heavily, like she is in labor. Then someone yelled, "'Oh my god he’s bleeding.' I am right at the end of the bar and see this kid in a white t-shirt with blood coming out of his forehead.”
Almost simultaneously she said a bartender yelled, "'Active shooter. Active shooter. Get down. Get away from the window!'" Then everyone gots off their stools and scrambled on their knees back to the kitchen area.
Combs hugged the first girl who came into the bar.
“It was so chaotic,” Combs said.
Police gathered eyewitnesses in the courtyard, sent the injured off in ambulances and others to another location. Police dogs outside were looking for shell casings, forensic teams came in.
Time became irrelevant, Combs said.
“We stayed inside and commiserated,” she said. “There was a lot of hugging, a lot of crying, a lot of thank yous, and holy shits among total strangers tonight. You don’t witness something like that.”
About three hours after the shooting, two yoga instructors stood across the street behind the police tape watching lights flash outside of their studio. Tears poured down their faces. They were not ready to talk.
