eddie sotomayor was in the travel industry, chapman in entertainment. they traveled the world together on cruises. >> we quickly went from strangers to the best of friends. >> reporter: his friend was always taking care of others and making sure they were having a good time. >> he was constantly making sure that everybody was enjoying everybody possible for what it was worth. >> reporter: he remembers international stops that weren't welcoming. >> there were times we wouldn't get off the boat and would get notifications that in this country the laws are x, y, z, if you happen to be gay. so you are cautious. what was that like feeling in our home, you know, some place where we should feel safe, you know? it's just horrible to imagine those last moments. >> reporter: that night at the club, the friend who was always celebrating, always supporting, sent him a snapchat that he hasn't been able to bring himself to open. do you think you've ever be able to watch that? >> i don't know. i don't know. no. >> reporter: greg is planning to be at the vigil tonight,

eddie menhert was a friend of eddie sotomayor, thank you for your time, appreciate it. >> thank you. >>> so we continue to follow the breaking story out of orlando as the president has arrived on the scene along with vice president joe biden, meeting with families inside amway arena. we're going to be talking more about what this means for the community of orlando as they are now planning 49 different funerals for those lost early sunday. what's it like to be in good hands? man, it's like pure power at your finger tips. like the power to earn allstate reward points, every time i drive. .want my number? and cash back r dring safe. and the wer automatically fi your car... i see you car! ani got the por to know who's coming and when if i break down. ...you must be gerry. hey... in means getting more from your car insurance with the all-powerful drivewise app. it's good to be in, good hands. ♪jake reese, "day to feel alive"♪ ♪ja rse, "day to feel alive" ♪jake reese, "day to feel alive"♪ real is touching a ray. amazing is moving like one. real is making new friends. real is an a

just moments ago this photo of one of the victims eddie sotomayor on his facebook page. his friends remembering him as a caring and energetic man. here at the orlando regional medical center every available resource, doctors, nurses, staff are working around the clock. 50 surgeries in the past 14 hours. a few people have been discharged. dozens are still here. and a few, lester are fighting for their lives. back to you. >> all right. janet shamlian, thank you very much. if you look down the street over my left shoulder you can see the pulse night club. it's about a block even as survivors tell their stories, it is with a twinge of disbelief. many are frankly finding it hard to imagine that what they went through. what they experienced was real. a short time ago i met up with joshua mcgill, a young nursing student who was in the club with his roommates when the shots rang out. he described the escape and how he brought a wounded stranger to safety. >> we heard three loud bangs. at first a natural like duck, because we weren't sure what it was. it could have been the music

just moments ago this photo of one of the victims eddie sotomayor on his facebook page. his friends remembering him as a caring and energetic man. here at the orlando regional medical center every available resource, doctors, nurses, staff are working around the clock. 50 surgeries in the past 14 hours. a few people have been discharged. dozens are still here. and a few, lester are fighting for their lives. back to you. >> all right. janet shamlian, thank you very much. if you look down the street over my left shoulder you can see the pulse night club. it's about a block from where i'm standing. even as survivors tell their stories, it is with a twinge of disbelief. many are frankly finding it hard to imagine that what they went through. what they experienced was real. a short time ago i met up with joshua mcgill, a young nursing student who was in the club with his roommates when the shots rang out. he described the escape and how he brought a wounded stranger to safety. >> we heard three loud bangs. at first a natural like duck, because we weren't sure what it was. it

and you knew eddie sotomayor. >> eddie was one of my first gay friends in college and i met him at a bar and we immediately became best friends. i was in the closet and didn't have many gay friends. i no longer live here but we've kept up through facebook and i saw him a few months ago and he's still somebody very, very special to me and he was a beautiful soul and had an infectious laughter and a leader in the gay community and very active and the message i have, if you don't think we're peel, you're wrong. and if you think there is a mild form of homophobia, you're wrong and if you think -- and if you don't do something about this, it's going to kill me. it's going to kill my friends and it's going to kill my friends' friends. >> reporter: i know this is a very emotional time for you. what made you have to come out here tonight? >> orlando is such a tight knit community. orlando has been attacked but as an lgbt community, we are so close and such one big family. and when you attack one of us, you attack all of us and every single person that i talked to has known someone on that li

the first victims' name was eddie sotomayor with friends in the castro and gulf life, always tock care of other people and often worse a pink tutu to the night clubs. >> he was are month of a guardian angel and it is sad i lost a friend. he now is our guardian angel. >> she was in shock when she found out that he died your morning. she said she has lost a lot of friends and family before but never like this, never in an act of hatred. >> in the south bay more than 300 people gathered yesterday at the lgbtq community have for a vigil to honor the victims. in san jose they lit candles to stand with orlando. >> hundreds on the memory of the shooting victims, and paul martin shared these photos where the lgbt and allies gathered to sure their grief and resolve ought to let hate win. >> now a hero from the shooting, who fled the bar during attack and came across pulse bartenders who had been shot three times. >> i noticed he was shot in each arm and i took it upon myself to let him know i would try to stop the plead asking took off my shirt and tied it around his first wound on the last arm

only 34, and we show the an incorrect photo a moment ago, but this is eddie sotomayor, jr., only 34, friends on facebook said "we weren't ready to lose you my friend praying for are your family, we love you forever." shots rang out at 2:00 a.m. and an officer shot at first and then the gunshots were fired among the 300 people inside of the pulse orlando and many are feeling lucky to be alive. >> a friend i was with was shot in the back and i took off my bandanna so he would not continue to plead and the pant leg was red and i was so...my hands were covered and i did not know what to do but stand this. >> pulse nightclub posted after 2:00 a.m. get out of pulse and run and the next three hours gun fire could be heard as police and ambulances rushed to the scene. >> right now we have shots fired outside. >> my god, people are getting shot, dude. high god, dude. firing off shots. >> between 2:00 and 5:00 a.m. hostages were held bit gunman until he was shot and swat members saved 30 hostages as mothers and family members waited in agony, the victims' namessor updated at www. cityofr atlan

sotomayor organized vacations for a travel company that worked with gay men. san francisco marketing executive john coal koecoalzar during one of the cruises. >> he was great and working with hundreds and maybe thousands of people. he was always patient. he was calm. he was a very friendly person. and he knew a lot of us by name. part of facebook groups before we met up before the cruise. >> he has a mediterranean trip coming up and had planned to see sotomayor again. he thought about canceling the trip after the attack but says he will go on the cruise to show his support for sotomayor. coming up on "world news tonight" at 5:30, a look at what investigators have unkoufred about the shooter's double life. >> officers from the bay area are showing their support for san jose police as they mourn one of their own. michael katherman died yesterday when his motorcycle collided with a minivan. police chiefs and command staff members from several different law enforcement agencies paid respect today at san jose police headquarters. >> nice to see the support from the

eddie sotomayor was clinging to life in the hospital this morning. he passed away. eddie was 32 years old. there are human beings behind these statistics. these are young people. these are people who had their whole lives ahead of them. it is an unspeakable thing that has happened in orlando, but we had 27 innocent victims in newtown as well. we had innocent victims at virginia tech, in movie theaters, and in shopping centers. when will enough be enough? when we will decide as a society we are not powerless in the face of this terror? we are combining hatred with extraordinarily powerful weapons where one individual can shoot 150 people, i believe you said, in the span of just a few minutes in one location. really, it could happen almost anywhere in the country. that doesn't need to be the reality in america today. those of us in public life, but really all of us need to take responsibility to take the steps we need to take to make it as difficult as possible for this kind of individual to do this kind of damage. >> let's listen to some of what the president had to

eddie sotomayor jr., his friends posting on facebook, we weren't ready to lose you, my friend, praying for your family, you will be missed always. we love you forever. and this is posting on facebook on many of these victims, remembrance pages. shots rang out beginning at 2:00 a.m. an officer shot at first and then the gunshots were fired among 300 people inside the gay nightclub pulse orlando. many feeling lucky to be alive. >> and all of a sudden you heard boom, boom, and we thought it was the stereo, like, oh, my goodness, something went on with the music, and after the second shot there was a pause and then it just started shooting, shooting, shooting, shooting. >> everybody that we know were in that club. like on our day to day basis we talk to them. and this happens like that. >> on facebook, pulse nightclub posting shortly after 2:00 a.m., everyone get out of pulse and keep running. over next three hours, gunfire can be heard as police and ambulances rush to the scene. >> right now we have active fire shots outside. >> oh, my god. people are getting shot, dude. >> get out of her

eddie sotomayor, 34, died in the nightclub. the passion i'm told is traveling. he was often wearing a top hat on a trip. it was a nickname, top hat eddie. eddie worked at a travel agency that catered to the gay community. the owner called sunday one of the saddest days of his life. braiden, i appreciate you being with us and sorry for your loss and sorry we're talking under these circumstances. tell us about the eddie you knew. what was he like? >> well, the thing about eddie and i think anyone who knew him would tell you the same that he just loved life an he constantly went out of his way to make sure that everyone was having the best possible time and enjoying every adventure for the most it could give you in life. and he just really strived to make sure everybody was having the best possible moment every possible time. >> we've got pictures of the two of you together we're showing. are you on a trip? >> yeah. we traveled all over the world together. you know, we worked together for the travel agency and we didn't know each other and i remember very distinctl

they called him loyal, clever, eddie sotomayor was just 34 years old when he died sunday morning. i'm joined by his cousin david. thank you for being with me. >> thank you for having me. >> first of all, just tell us about eddie. >> eddie was an amazing soul. i got to meet him ten years ago when we first found each other, and blessed each others as cousins. i was just out of my first year, and as soon as we met, we bonldbonl bounded, and he found out that i only knew my father's parents and his three siblings, and i had no relationship with that family, so he immediately said i'm your cousin, no questions asked. he became the one family that i had that i was able too go around and share so many amazing things i was accomplishing in my career that i couldn't share at that time with my side of the family. and he just was so amazing. and that's why i'm here. because us as a kpcommunity, its amazing to see how we open our arms and to become family who doesn't have a relationship with their blood family. and so you know, these clubs is like a second home to a lot of us. it is almost a

rowling tweeted, i can't stop crying. 34-year-old edward sotomayor, popular and fun-loving eddie justice was trapped in the bathroom during the rampage. his mother learned today he is among the dead. >> he texted, mommy, i love you. in the club they're shooting. that was 2:06. trapped in the bathroom. downtown. please call please. i'm going to die. >> can you imagine her heartbreak. among the devastation there are stories of hope. kenyon carter was so badly hurt doctors mistakenly told his family he'd passed away. but tonight after four operations he continues to fight for his life and people around the world are rooting for him. 52 others hurt in the attacks are still trying to make their own recovery. >>> a woman who lives in san francisco was close friends with one of the victims. star shelton says she texted her best friend and ex-girlfriend saturday night. >> i sent her a text message, i miss you. she wrote back, her last words were, i miss you too. >> kimberly k.j. morris had just started working as a bouncer at that nightclub. the two moved to hawaii together but parted ways when

edward sotomayor, they called him "top-hat eddie," worked for a gay travel agency, helping people see the world. juan ramon guerrero and drew lienan were planning to marry. their families are now planning a joint funeral. jason josaphat was just 19. computer savvy, loved photography, his uncle said he was very excited about his journey, a journey that has ended all too soon. 49 lives, 49 futures, lost. of the 53 people who were wounded tonight, 34 are still in hospitals. but we spoke with surgeons today who tell us they are now optimistic that all will survive. we also spoke today with the orlando police chief jon mina, who filled us in on what we didn't know about the assault on the club called pulse and the police counter-attack against the killer, omar mateen. mateen opened fire inside the club just after 2:00 a.m. ( gunfire ) a uniformed off-duty officer, working as a bouncer, returned fire and called for back-up. two officers arrived, and all three moved in aggressively. orlando police are trained to attack active shooters immediately rather than wait for a s.w.a.t. team. >> beca

edward sotomayor, they called him "top-hat eddie," worked for a gay travel agency helping people see the world. juan guerrero and drew lienan were planning to marry. their families are now planning a funeral. jason josaphat was just 19, the youngest to die. computer savvy, loved photography, his uncle said he was very excited about his journey, a journey that has ended all too soon. 49 lives, 49 futures, lost. of the 53 people who were wounded tonight, 34 are still in hospitals. but we spoke with surgeons today who tell us they are now optimistic that all will survive. we also spoke today with the orlando police chief jon m ina who filled us in on what we didn't know about the assault on the club called pulse and the police counter-attack against the killer, omar mateen. mateen opened fire inside the club just after 2:00 a.m. [gunfire] a uniformed off-duty officer working as a bouncer returned fire and called for back-up. two officers arrived, and all three proved in aggressively. orlando police are trained to attack active shooters immediately rather than wait for a swat team. >> be

edward sotomayor, they called him "top-hat eddie," worked for a gay travel agency helping people see the world. juan guerrero and drew lienan were planning to marry. their families are now planning a funeral. jason josaphat was just 19, the youngest to die. computer savvy, loved photography, his uncle said he was very excited about his journey, a journey that has ended all too soon. 49 lives, 49 futures, lost. of the 53 people who were wounded tonight, 34 are still in hospitals. but we spoke with surgeons today who tell us they are now optimistic that all survive. we also spoke today with the orlando police chief jon m ina who filled us in on what we didn't know about the assault on the club called pulse and the police counter-attack against the killer, omar mateen. mateen opened fire inside the club just after 2:00 a.m. [gunfire] a uniformed off-duty officer working as a bouncer returned fire and called for back-up. two officers arrived, and all three proved in aggressively. orlando police are trained to attack active shooters immediately rather than wait for a swat team. >> because

edward sotomayor was known as eddie, he was popular and remembered as an angel. fun loving is how gertrude remembers her son. >> he had a heart for the elderly. he lived with his grandmom because he wanted to take care of her. >> also among the dead, luis velma, eric ortiz and so many more. 49 lost souls, 53 others are wounded. of the love for the victims spread here to the bay area. a bouncer in that nightclub who lost her life, shared text messages with a local woman before the shots rang out. pete joins us from the castro district in san francisco. it must have been difficult for this woman, what did she share with you. >> difficult time for that woman. i want to show you, this is the memorial that's been set up since yesterday, honoring those victims in the orlando shooting. i spoke with that woman in san francisco whose friend was one of those victims. she wants to make sure her friend is never forgotten. >> star sent a simple text message to her ex-girlfriend on saturday night. she didn't know it would be the last. >> i said, i miss you. she wrote me back,

she was just 20 years old. 34-year-old edward sotomayor, known to his friends as top hat eddie, texted this video just minutes before he died in the gunfire. and this video appears to show the last moments of 25-year-old amanda alvier's life. she was working at a hospital and a drugstore to pay for nursing school. 22-year-old luis vielma was a leader at his church and worked on the harry potter ride at universal. j.k. rowling tweeted she can't stop crying. at orlando regional medical center, nicolas perez and angel torres learned their friend brenda mccool had died. she was 49 years old. >> from what we heard, she was missing. but we just saw now -- >> she's gone. >> reporter: mercedes flores wanted to be a party planner and work with her brothers, who were deejays. shane tomlinson brought music to the world with his band frequency. juan ramon gear row and drew were planning to marry. their families are now planning a joint she graduated third in her prep school class and committed to play college basketball. she was the massacre's youngest victim. >> we are learning more about the orl

she was just 20 years old. 34-year-old edward sotomayor, known to his friends as top hat eddie, texted this video just minutes before he died in the gunfire. and this video appears to show the last moments of 25-year-old amanda alvear's life. she was working at a hospital and a drugstore to pay for nursing school. 22-year-old luis vielma was a leader at his church and worked on the harry potter ride at universal. j.k. rowling tweeted she can't stop crying. at orlando regional medical center, nicolas perez and angel torres learned their friend brenda mccool had died. she was 49 years old. >> from what we heard, she was missing. by now we -- but now we just found out -- >> she's gone. >> reporter: mercedez flores wanted to be a party planner and work with her brothers, who were deejays. shane tomlinson brought music to the world with his band frequency. juan ramon guerrero and drew leinonen were planning to marry. their families are now planning a joint funeral. jason josefat was just 19 and akyra murray was just 18, in orlando celebrating her high school graduation in orlando. she gradu

she was just 20 years old. 34-year-old edward sotomayor, known to his friends as top hat eddie, texted this video just minutes before he died in the gunfire. and this video appears to show the last moments of 25-year-old amanda alvier's life. she was working at a hospital and a drugstore to pay for nursing school. 22-year-old luis vielma was a leader at his church and worked on the harry potter ride at universal. j.k. rowling tweeted she can't stop crying. at orlando regional medical center, nicolas perez and angel torres learned their friend brenda mccool had died. she was 49 years old. >> from what we heard, she was missing. but we just saw now -- >> she's gone. >> reporter: mercedes flores wanted to be a party planner and work with her brotrs deejays. shane tomlinson brought music to the world with his band frequency. juan ramon gear row and drew were planning to marry. their families are now planning a joint funeral. she graduated third in her prep school class and committed to play college basketball. she was the massacre's youngest victim. >> we are learning more about the orland

among them edward sotomayor. although everyone called him top hat eddie. friends say he loved to party. enrique rios lived in new york. he was in town for a weekend trip. his mom describes him as fun-loving and says he taking care of the elderly. kimberly morris worked as a bouncer at the club. friends called her an amazing woman. also among the dead eric ortiz and stanley almodovar. chris hanson almost didn't go to the club because it was latin night and he didn't speak spanish. he wound up carrying countless victims to safety. 53 people were wounded, but doctors are hoping they will be able to pull through. >>> we're learning more tonight about the terrorist in this case. omar mateen was an american citizen, a muslim born in new york. his parents are from afghanistan. in a picture with his current wife and their young son, they look a lot like any other american family, but mateen was also briefly married eight years ago. his first wife after just four months of marriage. >> he would get mad out of nowhere. that's when i started worrying about my safety

edward sotomayor junior was known as top-hat eddie. stanley almodovar was described as an amazing person with a good soul. eric ortiz-rivera sacrificed himself for his family according to a roommate. kimberly poor rise was the bouncer at the nightclub. she had just moved to florida from hawaii to help her mother and grandmother. and right now, in orlando, there is a vigil for the victims. here is a live look at that vigil as group of people have gathered in the plaza there outside the dr. phillips performing arts center are gathering to speak. you can see right now guest speakers have taken to the stage as the community there comes together after the worst mass shooting in u.s. history. the father of the 29-year-old shooter spoke out today and condemned the actions of his son. he says he saw his son right before the shooting but didn't notice anything unusual. here are a few of his comments during one of several interviews. >> i don't approve of any kind of violence in any shape or form. so i wish

edward sotomayor was one of those two died, known as eddie to his friends and remembered as an angel, a popular, fun-loving guy. >> he loved to party with people. >> reporter: fun-loving is how she remembers her son enrique rios. he went to orlando for a quick weekend trip. >> he had a heart for the elderly. he loved taking care of them. he lived with his grandma because he wanted to take care of her. >> reporter: kimberly morris worked as a bouncer at the club. friends called her an amazing woman. mors weeks ago with the caption, thank you. his son was shot multiple times at the club, but is expected to survive. >> god is giving you another chance. that's what i told him. >> many people tend to take advantage at a time like this. a warning now about scam artists looking to make money off the tragedy in orlando. >> hard to believe, but we have seen this before. susan hogan is looking into some of the red flags i guess we all need to be aware of when we're donating. >> tragedy inspires all of us to want to give, but it also inspires some people to take advantage of our generosity. that

edward sotomayor worked for a travel company. brenda mccool had beaten cancer, twice. peter gonzalez-cruz was always the life of the party. eddie justice was trapped in the bathroom during the rampage. >> he texted me at 2:06 and said, mommy, i love you. in the club they are shooting. please call police. i'm going to die. >> reporter: yet among the carnage, stories of hope. keenan carter was shot three times. >> you've got to wake up, you've got to come out of this. >> reporter: his sister even says doctors told the family he'd passed away. >> i said, do you hear me? he was like -- he shook his head. and i was like, i see this. you see what's going on. it was just like a miracle. just like right before my eyes. >> reporter: after three surgeries, the family gathered in prayer. this morning, they were told a fourth operation stopped the blood loss. though carter is still in critical condition. >> he's a fighter. >> reporter: tonight orlando, a community just miles from the happiest place on earth, is coping with unimaginable sadness. a vigil honoring the victims is set

edward sotomayor worked for a travel company. brenda mccool had beaten cancer, twice. peter gonzalez-cruz was always the life of the party. eddie justice was trapped in the bathroom during the rampage. >> he texted me at 2:06 and said, mommy, i love you. in the club they are shooting. that was at 2:06. trapped in the bathroom. downtown. police call police. i'm going to die. >> reporter: yet among the carnage, stories of hope. keenan carter was shot three times. >> you've got to wake up, you've got to come out of this. >> reporter: his sister even says doctors told the family he'd passed away. >> i said, do you hear me? he was like -- he and i was like, i see this. you see what's going on. it was just like a miracle. just like right before my eyes. >> reporter: after three surgeries, the family gathered in prayer. this morning, they were told a fourth operation stopped the blood loss. though carter is still in critical condition. >> he's a fighter. >> reporter: tonight orlando, a community just miles from the happiest place on earth, is coping with unimaginable sadness.

edward sotomayor worked for a travel company. brenda mccool had beaten cancer, twice. peter gonzalez-cruz was always the life of the party. eddie justice was trapped in the bathroom during the rampage. >> he texted me at 2:06 and said, mommy, i love you. in the club they are shooting. that was at 2:06. trapped in the bathroom. downtown. police call police. i'm going to die. >> reporter: yet among the carnage, stories of hope. keenan carter was shot three times. >> you've got to wake up, you've got to come out of this. >> reporter: his sister even says doctors told the family he'd passed away. >> i said, do you hear me? he was like -- he shook his head. and i was like, i see this. you see what's going on. it was just like a miracle. just like right before my eyes. >> reporter: after three surgeries, the family gathered in prayer. this morning, they were told a fourth operation stopped the blood loss. though carter is still in critical condition. >> he's a fighter. >> reporter: tonight orlando, a community just miles from the happiest place on earth, is coping with unima

. ♪ >> reporter: 34-year-old edward sotomayor jr. was known as eddie to his friends from sarasota, florida, he was a popular fun loving guy who often wore top hats and worked for a gay travel company. on facebook, he described himself as i'm always on the go. 23-year-old stanley almodovar moved here from massachusetts. luis omar ocasio-capo called omar. he shared the message dance freely in heavens. 22-year-old luis vialma worked at universal studios on a harry potter ride. the day he died, he posted his facebook picture describing true friends who have become family. the friend kneeling in front was with him at pulse. he's in critical juan ramon guerrero was happy to be in school. peter gonzalez cruz, age 22, went by omi, originally from south africa. he worked most recently at u.p.s. in florida, where a local customer said he was always sweet. eric ortiz rivera, 36, from miami, was originally from puerto rico, his nickname was shocky. he lived in orlando with his boyfriend and worked at a party city and sunglass hut. his cousin tol

a night for fun. 34-year-old edward sotomayor jr. was known as eddie to his friends. from sarasota, florida, he was a popular, fun-loving guy, who wore top hats and worked for a gay travel company. on facebook, he described himself as, up, up, and away, i'm always on the go. 23-year-old stanley almadovar moved to florida from springfield, massachusetts. he was a pharmacy technician. described as always so happy, loving, an amazing friend. luis omar just 20 years old, was called omar. he worked at a starbucks in kissmy, florida. his aunt called him her dear nephew. and shared the message, dance freely in the heavens. 22 luis veilma, worked on the harry potter ride. friends mourn him, saying he was awesome. and happy and sweet. the day he died, he hosted this facebook picture, describing true friends who have become family. the friend with him in front, was at pulse on saturday night. he is in critical condition. juan ramone guerrero, 33, worked as a telemarketer, and had started college at the university of central florida. a relative reportedly said juan didn't know w

. >> sotomayor worked for a gay travel agency in orlando and was known to his friends as top hat eddie for the blacktop hat he lived to wear. all the shooter's familiar said his son was "a goodson," and is shocked by his son's actions and he should not have carried out the massacre because god will punish those involved in homosexuality. he told a reporter why he is talking about his son so soon talking about his son so soon after his death. i love my american brothers and sisters and this news wasn't easy to hear. i wish there was something i could have done in i knew about this. >> he said he doesn't know the motive but said his son did become outrage after seeing two men kiss in miami. he lives in florida but has strong ties to afghanistan posting a tv show that weighs in on the country's politics. >> donation are pouring in to help the victims and families affected by the mass shooting with a gofundme raising $1.3 million since yesterday. the original goal was $1 million. that goal has new been increased to $2 million. we have a link to the fundraising page at abc7 news. >> we will

edward sotomayor was a travel executive. that woman was kimberly morris, a bounce r. this is the mother of 30-year-old eddie justice whose son texted her 45 minutes as that gunman was inside that night club making his way to the bathroom where he was hiding. the first text was "mommy i love you." then there was more. >> "please call police, i'm going to die. call them now. i'm in the bathroom. he's coming. i'm going to die." >> some families were relieved to find out their loved ones were shot but survived. angel cologne was shot three times. each time the gunman returned to where he was hiding, the young woman next to him did not survive. 53 people are injured. some are still if grave condition in the hospital. in a testament to the amount of support going out to victims and families, a go fund me account was set up. as of this morning, $1.3 million had been donated, contributed by more than 33,000 people. >>> so tragic to hear. as the nation mourns, thousands of people across the bay area are showingç their support for the victims s of orlando from vigil to memori

his friends often called him top hat eddie because he always wore a black top hat to events. joining me now, three of edward's friends. eddie meinart, collin perez and jeff. we met last night at that event. and you told me that, eddie, you're eddie and he's eddie has a very special place to you as a gay man. >> he was one of the first gay friends that i ever made. so i grew up here, went to college here, and when i went out, he was one of the first people that came out to me and knew -- i was by myself. immediately became fast friends. he introduced me to people. was just this incredibly caring person. he was the life of the party. he cared so passionately about the community. was incredibly involved. it's devastating. even though i now live in south florida, i'm no longer here, he was, it's as if i was still here. we kept in touch. >> what did he mean to you? >> he was -- he helped me in my experience coming out and he was so open when i wasn't. and when i had shame. and so that was incredibly important to me to show me how to be courageous. >> and now you're being called on

edward sotomayor was a popular travel planner known as top hat eddie. he sent this snapchat to friends from the nightclub on saturday night amanda alviar wanted to be a nurse. took these inside the club before the shots. she died alongside one of her best friends, mercedes florez. >> basically my life revolved around them, and my immediate family, but they're my second family. >> reporter: kj morris was a bouncer at pulse. she moved at orlando two months ago to be close to her mother and grandmother. >> so excited to start working there and to be a part of that community. >> reporter: enrique rios, a social work student from brooklyn, remembered by his family. >> just throw someone away from a bunch of people that cared and loved him so much. >> reporter: jimmy dejesus velasquez a retail worker originally from puerto rico who left behind a lifelong friend. >> i thought he was immortal. you know? he always said he would never leave me and abandon me and i trusted him. >> reporter: eddie texted his mother from the club during the massacre, asking for help

he had a nickname everybody knew him by, top hat eddie. he was a travel agent and always would wear a top hat on his head and actually friends and people who knew him paid tribute by posting that top hat emoji all over facebook. that's how they remembered him. also luis omar ocasio-capo, youngest of the victims, 20 years old. so many ways that people are trying to remember all these people that were killed. we have more names to show you. we're still working together and learning about these stories, these last moments of their lives. also again, carol, as i mentioned, the tributes people are paying to them now that they are gone. carol? >> all right, brynn gingras, thanks so much. i want to throw it back to erin, who is at one of the hospitals. doctors are still treating victims. erin? >> they are. security at the entrance of all of these hospitals as they're trying to protect these victims and families coming in to visit them this morning. >>> still to come, the killer at one point was on the fbi's radar. two investigations. a heated deb

al's also the owner of a travel company where eddie worked. al, thank you so much for being with me. i'm so, so sorry for your loss. >> thank you very much. >> can we just begin with a fact that you were -- eddie was sending you videos. am i right? he was here at pulse with his partner saturday night and sending you videos having a great time on the dance floor and pleading for you to come out. >> that's -- he sent me a text about coming to pulse and he made a funny joke. eddie was just in cuba in april organizing the first gay cruise in the world. and he made the joke that pulse was like the malacon which is a very famous area in havana and i should come to pulse. and i told him i couldn't because i was visiting a friend i hadn't seen in a long time. and then about 23 minutes before the shooting began, he sent me a snapchat of him and his partner inside pulse with the stage and the music in the background. and eddie was -- he's very famous in the gay community in the united states and in europe as this black top hat he wears and the snapchat