Updated: Gunman Opens Fire at U.S. Airport …… Five Dead, Several Injured

A shooting has occurred at the Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport, Florida, said to be among the busiest in the U.S.

An initial report on MSNBC said that nine people were shot and one person has died. The shooter, identified as Estaban Santiago, is also reportedly in custody.

A report on CNN, however, said the number of the dead may have gone up to five, with 13 injured.

The airport has also been shut down, while passengers have been evacuated to a safe shelter, following suspicion of the presence of a second gunman.

A security sweep of the airport is underway.

Video from the airport, on Friday afternoon, showed hundreds of passengers corralled together on the tarmac with emergency vehicles parked outside the terminal with lights flashing.

An airport spokesman said that the centre of the incident was in the baggage claim area of Terminal 2.

Former White House press secretary to President George W. Bush, Ari Fleischer, who was at the airport, also tweeted about the chaos the incident generated.

At about1pm, he tweeted, “shots have been fired. Everyone is running”.

Then around 1:30pm, he tweeted again: “All seems calm now but the police aren’t letting anyone out of the airport – at least not the area where I am.”

It has not been confirmed if the incident is terror-related.

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