How the Trump assassination attempt unfolded, moment by moment

ITV News' Duncan Golestani explains how the events unfolded.

Pictures of an assassination attempt on the former US President Donald Trump during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania rocked the US - and the world - over the weekend.

Trump managed to escape with only an injury to the right ear. However, one attendee was killed and two were critically injured.

The shooter, identified by the FBI as Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot dead at the scene.

But the incident has raised several concerns about security at the event, with many asking one obvious question: How was a gunman, who some say was in plain view of some spectators, able to open fire on Trump?

ITV News breaks down exactly what happened, moment by moment.

At just after 6pm local time, Trump took to the podium at the rally at Butler Farm Show - around 50 kilometers north of Pittsburg in Pennsylvania.

There were roughly 15,000 attendees in the crowd, and everyone had to go through a metal detector screening before the event, CNN reported.

Less than ten minutes into Trump's speech, at around 6:15pm, multiple shots were fired towards the stage.

Senate Republican candidate Dave McCormick was sitting in the front row of the event and told CNN that Trump had just invited him up to the stage, when he heard “a series of shots – about seven or eight shots – just ‘pop, pop, pop.’”

“It was all of a sudden just chaos. The Secret Service immediately covered the president, jumped on top of him, and the crowd immediately went to the ground."

Trump then grabbed his right ear and dropped to the ground as Secret Service agents told him to get down and rushed to the stage, protecting him.

While Trump remained on the ground, there was one last round of shots and loud screams from the crowd.

About 45 seconds after, agents were heard on the rally microphone saying, “Shooter’s down.”

“Are we good to move?” one agent asked.

“Are we clear?” asked another.

“We’re clear!” a Secret Service agent said as Trump was lifted to his feet, his face and ear bloodied.

The agents prepared to move Trump offstage into his nearby SUV, but he told them to wait before lifting his fist in the air, prompting a loud cheer from the crowd at the rally.

Then he mouthed the word “fight” three times while pumping his fist.

The crowd then chanted “USA!” as the former president was taken down the stairs by several agents and into his vehicle.

According to police officers, the shooter was positioned on a building rooftop just outside the rally venue. It would have been to Trump’s right as he spoke.

A video taken by someone attending the rally shows how some people noticed the gunman on the roof only seconds before he pulled the trigger.

"He's got a gun," some men can be heard yelling in the background.

The Secret Service said the shooter fired “multiple shots toward the stage from an elevated position outside of the rally venue.”

He was then killed by Secret Service agents.

Video posted to social media showed the suspected Trump shooter lying down on the roof of a building, appearing motionless.

A video taken by a rally attendee shows how people appeared to see the gunman with his rifle moments before the attack on Trump

A man who spoke before Trump at the rally told CNN that he jumped over a barricade to comfort an individual who was bleeding after being shot.

Rico Elmore described jumping over the barrier and putting his hand on the head of the attendee who was shot.

“All we know is shots were fired, and then I jumped over the barrier and put my hand on the guy’s head that was profusely bleeding," he said.

He said he didn’t know the attendee and he was “just a stranger.”

Concerns about lack of security at rally

In a news conference, Kevin Rojek, FBI special agent in charge of the Pittsburgh office, said it was “surprising” the gunman was able to fire multiple shots.

“We’re still working through the security apparatus that the Secret Service had in place, what potentially happened,” he said.

“There’s going to be a long investigation into exactly what took place and how the individual was able to get access to the location, what type of weapon he had. All that is really days, weeks, and months of investigation.”

Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police added that the investigation would allow authorities to “take a look at where any failures occurred and what can be done better in the future.”

“In their defense,” Bivens added, “it is incredibly difficult to have a venue open to the public and secure that against any possible threat against a very determined attacker.”

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