Oct. 1 (UPI) -- President Joe Biden on Saturday marked five years since a gunman killed 60 people while firing from a window at the Mandalay Bay casino in Las Vegas.
Gunman Stephen Paddock fired more than 1,000 bullets from his suite on the hotel's 32nd floor, killing concertgoers at the Route 91 Harvest Festival, on October 1, 2017, in what remains the single deadliest mass shooting in modern United States history.
In a span of about 10 minutes, Paddock also shot and wounded another 413 people while yet hundreds more were injured in the ensuing panic.
"Five years ago, a concert became a killing field, and our nation was once more shocked to our very core," Biden said in a statement.
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"In the face of such horror, Nevadans showed what it means to be #VegasStrong. Concert goers risked their own lives to bring others to safety. Community members stood in line for hours to donate blood, while first responders worked swiftly to save lives."
Biden added that his administration "has been working tirelessly" to put an end to mass shootings, as the families continue to mourn victims from shootings this year in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas.
"I've taken more executive action to curb gun violence than any president at this point in office, including crack down on ghost guns and rogue gun dealers," Biden said in the statement.
In April, Biden nominated former U.S. Attorney Steve Dettelbach to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and unveiled a new rule to address growing concerns over so-called "ghost guns," which are privately assembled firearms without serial numbers.
"The gun lobby tried to tie up the regulators and paperwork for a long, long time. The NRA called this rule I'm about to announce 'extreme.' But let me ask you, is it extreme to protect police officers, extreme to protect our children," Biden said at the time.
"Look, if you buy a couch you have to assemble, it's still a couch. If you order a package like this one over here that includes the parts you need and the directions for assembling it, you bought a gun. Take a look!"
Biden, in his statement Saturday, added that he also signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act which he called the "first significant gun violence reduction legislation in nearly 30 years."
"But we're not stopping there," Biden said. "I am determined to seize this momentum and work with Congress to enact further commonsense gun violence prevention legislation, including banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, which have enabled shooters to slaughter so many innocents."
