Shots in Maine: "Sirens and helicopters." It's absurd," said a Lewiston local

 Shots in Maine: "Sirens and helicopters." It's absurd," said a Lewiston local

The whole city of Lewiston was placed under lockdown after mass gunshots that apparently left at least 16 people dead and several more wounded, a horrified local told the BBC News Channel.

The candidate for city council, Billie Jayne Cooke, said that she learned about the assault and the shooter's whereabouts only after leaving a public gathering on Wednesday night.

"All I could hear on the journey home was sirens, siren after siren. I've never heard this much activity in a city before—helicopters, sirens.

"Police are coming up from all over the state and even outside the state," a clearly upset Ms. Cooke said.

It is abhorrent. We often say that it's not a question of if, but when, and you simply don't believe it would ever happen, but it did."

As she drove home, Ms. Cooke said that she spoke with one of her sons.

"All I could hear when I was speaking with him on my vehicle phone was sirens and helicopters. And when I did eventually return, I informed him that I was safe at home.

"It's just insane. This simply seems too unbelievable for me to handle.

"Everybody here is in the in the dark, as others as well is in the world."

While stating that Lewiston had a population of less than 40,000, Ms. Cooke also noted, "We're very fortunate that we actually have two hospitals in our city, which is fantastic as small as we are."

Riley Dumont told ABC News that she heard many gunshots as her 11-year-old daughter was participating in a kids' bowling league in Lewiston.

Then, according to her, their family was cornered by her father, a former police officer.

She stated, "I was lying on top of my daughter." "My mother was laying on top of me."

She said she witnessed what seemed to be three or four victims.