Six of the nine killed were black, police said. Although they'll investigate the possibility of a hate crime, they said the quick timing of the violence made any discrimination in the shooting seem unlikely. Police said Connor Betts, who was white, was killed in less than a minute by officers patrolling in the area. They identified the other dead as Monica Brickhouse, 39; Nicholas Cumer, 25; Derrick Fudge, 57; Thomas McNichols, 25; Lois Oglesby, 27; Saeed Saleh, 38; Logan Turner, 30; and Beatrice N. Warren-Curtis, 36. Police tape drapes over a chair near a pile of shoes after a mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio. Credit:AP Whaley said at least 27 more people were treated for injuries, and at least 15 of those have been released. Several more were in serious or critical condition, hospital officials said at a news conference Sunday morning. Some suffered multiple gunshot wounds and others were injured as they fled, the officials said. Betts was from Bellbrook, southeast of Dayton. Bellbrook Police Chief Doug Doherty said he and his officers weren't aware of any history of violence by Betts, including during high school.

Brad Howard said he went to school with Betts and had known him for two decades. "The Connor Betts that I knew was a nice kid," Howard said. "The Connor Betts that I talked to I always got along with well." Dayton mayor Nan Whaley addresses the press after the shooting. Credit:AP Police blocked access in Betts' neighbourhood, where neighbour Stephen Cournoyer said he often saw Betts mowing the lawn or walking the dog. "He seemed like a good kid," Cournoyer said. "He wasn't a speed demon, didn't do anything crazy. But that's not to say, I mean, obviously he had an issue."

Nikita Papillon, 23, was across the street at Newcom's Tavern when the shooting started. She said she saw a girl she had talked to earlier lying outside Ned Peppers Bar. "She had told me she liked my outfit and thought I was cute, and I told her I liked her outfit and I thought she was cute," Papillon said. She herself had been to Ned Peppers the night before, describing it as the kind of place "where you don't have to worry about someone shooting up the place." Police are investigating to determine the motivations behind the shooting that left 10 people dead in Dayton. Credit:AP "People my age, we don't think something like this is going to happen," she said. "And when it happens, words can't describe it." Tianycia Leonard, 28, was in the back, smoking, at Newcom's. She heard "loud thumps" that she initially thought was someone pounding on a dumpster.

"It was so noisy, but then you could tell it was gunshots and there was a lot of rounds," Leonard said. Staff of an Oregon District bar called Ned Peppers said in a Facebook post that they were left shaken and confused by the shooting. The bar said a bouncer was treated for shrapnel wounds. An employee at Ned Peppers wrote in a post on Instagram that "all of our staff is safe and our hearts go out to everyone involved as we gather information." Speaking at a press conference Sunday, Lt. Col. Matt Carper said officers were on the scene within minutes.

“This is a very safe part of downtown, and it’s a very popular destination for visitors in the Oregon District, so we regularly have officers in the area,” Carper said. “Fortunately we had multiple officers in the immediate vicinity when the incident started so there was a very short timeline of violence, we’re very fortunate for that.” Carper said it appears at this stage that there was only one shooter, but said police will continue to investigate as “there is always a possibility that there could be more people involved”. “Dayton is a very safe area… this is extremely unusual, obviously for any community, let alone Dayton. This is unheard of - it’s very tragic and very sad evening,” Carper said. “We are very fortunate that the officers were in close proximity and that they reacted the way that they did… It could have been much, much worse.”

The FBI is assisting local police with the investigation. When the phone rang at 3am, Derasha Merrett happened to be up, feeding her newborn. A friend was on the line, delivering horrible news through sobs: "Lois got shot and she's dead." Merrett and Lois Oglesby were more than just friends. "We grew up as cousins," she said. "We grew up in the same church, on the same drill team. She works at my kids' day care. We all grew up in this little town. We're all family. We're all hurting behind this." Oglesby, 27, leaves behind a newborn and an older daughter, Merrett said. She was excited that her friend had just returned from maternity leave. "I was like, I'm so happy you're back at work. Now I don't have to worry about who has my newborn," she said. "She loves her kids unconditionally." She added that her friend was in nursing school and looked forward to a career that would make the most of her love for children. "She was a wonderful mother, a wonderful person," Merrett said. "I have cried so much, I can't cry anymore."

Loading President Donald Trump was briefed on the shooting and praised law enforcement's speedy response in a tweet Sunday. The FBI is assisting with the investigation. Governor Mike DeWine visited the scene after earlier ordering that flags in Ohio remain at half-staff. DeWine, a Republican, said policymakers must now consider: "Is there anything we can do in the future to make sure something like this does not happen?" Whaley said more than 50 other mayors also have reached out to her.

A family assistance centre was set up at the Dayton Convention Centre, where people seeking information on victims arrived in a steady trickle throughout the morning, many in their Sunday best, others looking bedraggled from a sleepless night. Some local pastors were on hand to offer support, as were comfort dogs. The Ohio shooting came hours after a man opened fire in a crowded El Paso, Texas, shopping area, leaving 20 dead and more than two dozen injured. Just days before, on July 28, a 19-year-old shot and killed three people, including two children, at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in Northern California. Sunday's shooting in Dayton is the 22nd mass killing of 2019 in the US, according to the AP/USA Today/Northeastern University mass murder database that tracks homicides where four or more people were killed - not including the offender. The 20 mass killings in the US in 2019 that preceded this weekend claimed 96 lives. Whaley said the Oregon District is expected to reopen Sunday afternoon, and a vigil is planned Sunday evening. The minor league Dayton Dragons who play in nearby Fifth Third Field postponed their Sunday afternoon game against the Lake County Captains "due to this morning's tragic event". The shooting in Dayton comes after the area was heavily damaged when tornadoes swept through western Ohio in late May, destroying or damaging hundreds of homes and businesses.

"Dayton has been through a lot already this year, and I continue to be amazed by the grit and resiliency of our community," Whaley said. With AP, The New York Times