A resident of a Maine town rattled by Wednesday's mass shooting says the community is left fear-stricken as the manhunt for the person of interest, believed to be 40-year-old Robert Card, rolls into Thursday afternoon.
Joshua Pietrowicz, a former Maine House candidate and current mayoral candidate, said he was picking up an order at a nearby restaurant at the time the attack started.
"I realized after about the sixth ambulance that it might have been an active shooter situation, but my phone had died, so I ran home and grabbed my Glock 45 before heading to Longhorn just to be safe… I had to get something for my grandmother over at Walmart, and once I started hearing the news come in as I was at the Longhorn, I realized this was not something I should be leaving," he told "FOX & Friends," Thursday.
SEVERAL DEAD IN LEWISTON, MAINE MASS SHOOTING
Pietrowicz stayed behind for three hours, making sure people were walked out of the restaurant safely.
"As far as I know, everyone got home safe. We never had an incident. Once we had police presence, everyone felt a little more secure," he explained.
He said the issue is something the town will battle as an "image problem" for years to come.
"Folks are simply… they're terrified and have every right to be so," he added.
A press briefing from officials held early Thursday said the mass shooting, which took place across two locations in the Pine Tree State – a restaurant and a bowling alley – claimed at least 18 lives and left at least 13 others injured.
Earlier reports speculated the numbers were higher.
MAINE POLICE AUDIO DESCRIBES FRANTIC MASS SHOOTING RESPONSE: ‘MULTIPLE VICTIMS’
Now police presence in the area is massive, with groups intensifying their search for the suspect still at large.
"This is something where we need to pray, read our Bibles and make sure our firearms are loaded. We're going to need any sense of peace to get through this," Pietrowicz continued.
"We're doing the right thing, sheltering in place, letting the authorities handle this. But it is certainly something where, I mean, this is just absolutely terrifying right now with what we're going through, and we just need to come together as a community and pray."
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