At least 16 people were killed Wednesday and dozens injured after a gunman opened fire in a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, Maine, the latest mass killing in the U.S.

Authorities said the shooting started just before 7 p.m. Lewiston Police said that they were dealing with an active shooter incident at Schemengees Bar and Grille and Sparetime Recreation, a bowling alley.

The gunman remains at large Thursday. Police have warned people to be on alert and stay off the streets in Lewiston, the second-largest city in Maine, and other neighboring communities.

The Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office later released two photos of the suspect on its Facebook page that showed a gunman walking into a bowling alley with a weapon raised to his shoulder. City residents reacted with shock and many businesses rushed to close and lock their doors upon hearing a gunman was on a rampage.

Melinda Small, the owner of Legends Sports Bar and Grill, said her staff immediately locked their doors and moved all 25 customers and employees away from the doors after a customer reported hearing about the shooting at the bowling alley less than a quarter-mile away around 7 p.m. Soon, the police flooded the roadway and a police officer eventually escorted everyone out of the building four at a time. Everyone in the bar is safe.

“I am honestly in a state of shock. I am blessed that my team responded quickly and everyone is safe,” Small told The Associated Press. “But the same time, my heart is broken for this area and for what everyone is dealing with. I just feel numb.”

The White House said President Joe Biden had been briefed on what’s known so far about the mass shooting and will continue to receive updates.

"The President spoke by phone individually to Maine Governor Janet Mills, Senators Angus King and Susan Collins, and Congressman Jared Golden about the shooting in Lewiston, Maine and offered full federal support in the wake of this horrific attack," the White House said in a statement.

A spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety urged residents to stay in their homes with their doors locked.

“Law enforcement is currently investigating at two locations right now,” Shannon Moss said. “Again please stay off the streets and allow law enforcement to diffuse the situation.”

"We are encouraging all businesses to lock down and or close while we investigate," the sheriff's office announced.

Lewiston police department names 'person of interest'

Shortly before 11 p.m. ET, Lewiston police posted on its Facebook page a photo and the name of a 40-year-old man, Robert Card, who police say is a person of interest. Such a designation usually is made for a person wanted for questioning and is not considered officially as a suspect.

"Law Enforcement is attempting to locate Robert Card 4/4/1983, as a person of interest regarding the mass shooting at Schemengees Bar and Sparetime Recreation this evening," the Facebook post read. "Card should be considered armed and dangerous. Please contact law enforcement if you are aware of his whereabouts.

The Associated Press, citing a state police bulletin, said Card is a firearms instructor trained by the military and was recently committed to a mental health facility.

The police intelligence bulletin was being circulated to law enforcement officials on Wednesday night. It says that Card had been trained as a firearms instructor at a U.S. Army Reserve training facility in Maine. The document says Card had been committed to a mental health facility for two weeks in the summer of 2023. It did not provide specific details about his treatment or condition.

The document also said Card had reported hearing voices and had threatened to carry out a shooting at the military training base in Saco, Maine.

Vehicle of interest found in neighboring town

During a news briefing late Wednesday, Maine Department of Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck said that Card is considered armed and dangerous.

A vehicle of interest was located in Lisbon, about 8 miles away from Lewiston, according to Sauschuck. The shelter-in-place order was extended to Lisbon while Lewiston and its twin city, Auburn, remained under lockdown.

Sauschuck declined to say how many people have been killed in the shooting incidents Wednesday.

"This is a very fluid situation," he said.

Schools will be closed Thursday

Public schools in Lewiston will be closed Thursday, the district's superintendent announced Wednesday night.

"There remains a lot of unknowns at this time. Information moves quickly but not always accurately," Lewiston Public Schools Superintendent Jake Langlais said in a statement on the district's website. "Please continue to shelter in place or get to safety. We will continue to update you with information and next steps as appropriate."

Bates College, a private liberal arts school, is currently on “lockdown and will remain on lockdown until local law enforcement advise otherwise,” according to campus spokesperson Mary Pols.

“We are focused on the safety and security of our students and the campus,” Pols told USA TODAY.

Several campus events were canceled and businesses near the campus closed. In an update late Wednesday, the school said that the campus would remain open on Thursday but classes would be canceled.

"We know that these events have shocked and frightened our community. And we grieve for those whose lives were tragically lost in this heinous act of violence," Geoffrey Swift, vice president for finance and administration and treasurer for Bates College, said in a statement.

The college is home to about 1,800 undergraduate students, according to the school’s most recent enrollment data.

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Hospitals react to mass casualty event

On its website, Central Maine Medical Center said staff were “reacting to a mass casualty, mass shooter event” and were coordinating with area hospitals to take in patients.

Mills said Wednesday evening she was aware of an active shooter situation in Lewiston.

“I urge all people in the area to follow the direction of State and local enforcement. I will to continue to monitor the situation and remain in close contact with public safety officials,” Mills said.

The Boston Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives posted on X Wednesday evening that it was also responding to the situation in Lewiston.

Maine Medical Center, a Level 1 trauma center in Portland, has alerted on-call staff and created critical care and operating room capacity in preparation for potential patients from the shooting, the hospital said in a statement.

The hospital confirmed Wednesday that it was receiving one patient from the Central Maine Medical Center.

“Out of an abundance of caution and due the dynamic nature of this situation, (Maine Medical Center) and other MaineHealth hospitals have closed their campuses to non-hospital personnel and non-patients until further notice,” the hospital said.

Residents shaken, await word on loved ones

Anne Kinney, a resident of Auburn, Maine, a city about 30 miles northeast of Augusta, Maine, told the Lewiston Sun Journal that she was picking up a prescription in Lewiston Wednesday evening when she heard blaring over a loudspeaker “telling us that there was an active shooter situation and that all entrance/exit doors were being locked.”

Kinney said employees brought out chairs for them to sit in as they sheltered in place. She said authorities did not provide more information about the situation.

Later, a policeman arrived and advised store employees to let out customers one by one, to dim the lights, and close down the shop.

Kinney said she got home safely but felt “very shaken.”

Late Wednesday, Riley Dumont told ABC News that her 11-year-old daughter was bowling in a children’s league at Sparetime Recreation when she heard several shots. Dumont’s father, a retired police officer, moved the family into a corner.

"I was laying on top of my daughter. My mother was laying on top of me," Dumont told ABC News.

Dumont said she saw three or four apparent victims of the gunfire.

Kathy Lebel, co-owner of Schemengees, where several people were shot, said she was not at the restaurant at the time of the shooting but was told that someone had walked in and “started shooting.” Lebel said the staff ran out.

“It was just a fun night playing cornhole … it’s the last thing you’re expecting, right?” Lebel told the news outlet. “I still feel like this whole thing is a nightmare.”

She was among about two dozen people outside Central Maine Medical Center trying to get more information about loved ones, the Sun Journal reported.

Shootings follow deadly assault in April

The shooting incidents late Wednesday are the latest to rock Maine this year.

In April, a man fatally shot his parents and a couple in their Bowdoin, Maine home and barn. He then fled to a nearby interstate, where he fired at passing cars and hit three members of another family. 

Since 2006, more than 560 mass killings have been reported in the United States, according to a database kept by USA TODAY, The Associated Press, and Northeastern University. Over that time span, at least 2,900 people died.

“No American should leave their home and fear becoming the victim of a mass shooting, but tonight, Maine families are grieving from this untold loss of life,” said Kris Brown, president of gun violence prevention organization Brady.

Lewiston's history in New England is peaceful, vibrant, diverse

Lewiston is the second most populous city in Maine and sits between Portland and the state’s capital Augusta. As of 2022, over 38,400 residents live in the city, which emerged as a major center for African immigration into Maine. The Somali population, which numbers in the thousands, has changed Lewiston’s demographics into one of the most diverse in northern New England.

The city is about 35 miles north of Portland and about 33 miles southwest of Augusta. The area of Lewiston has roots that date to the 17th century, where it later grew from a small town to a thriving mill city.

The city prides itself on being a place of opportunity, according to the Lewiston city website. Lewiston is also home to one the largest French-speaking populations in the United States and is the epicenter for Maine’s Franco-American heritage, according to the state’s office of tourism.

“Vibrant and culturally diverse with a strong sense of community, Lewiston delivers affordable, accessible and abundant opportunity,” the Lewiston city website states.

Mass killing database:Revealing trends, details and anguish of every US event since 2006

Contributing: Joey Garrison, Michael Collins, USA TODAY; The Associated Press