The survivors of the Route 91 Harvest Festival massacre are to split a massive $800 million (£648 million) payout from MGM Resorts International bosses.
The settlement comes in response to lawsuits filed against MGM for negligence, claiming officials at the company's Mandalay Bay hotel should not have allowed a gunman with an arsenal of weapons to book a room overlooking the open-air festival site in October, 2017.
"While nothing will be able to bring back the lives lost or undo the horrors so many suffered on that day, this settlement will provide fair compensation for thousands of victims and their families," said Robert Eglet, whose law firm represents thousands of people affected by the shooting. "We believe that the terms of this settlement represent the best outcome for our clients and will provide the greatest good for those impacted by these events."
In a statement, MGM Resorts International executives said, "The incident that took place on October 1st was a terrible tragedy perpetrated by an evil man. These kinds of lawsuits are not unexpected and we intend to defend ourselves against them. That said, out of respect for the victims, we will give our response through the appropriate legal channels."
Country star Jason Aldean, who was on stage at the festival as bullets rained down on the crowd, claiming the lives of 58 music fans, remembered the victims of the massacre earlier this week as the second anniversary loomed.
"This will always be a tough day for us," he wrote in an Instagram post. "Not a day goes by that we don’t think about our @route91harvest family."
