After the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, 48 of the 49 victims have been identified

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UPDATE: 7:30 a.m. ET June 13: At a press conference in Orlando, officials said 48 of the 49 victims have been identified.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Twenty-one of the people killed in a mass shooting at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida, early Sunday have been identified by city officials.

A gunman, identified by police as an American man named Omar Mateen, 29, opened fire at Pulse nightclub early Sunday, killing at least 50 people and injuring 53.

Authorities have contacted the next of kin of 21 victims so far. Officials expected to release more names as more next of kin are contacted.

The names released are:

Edward Sotomayor Jr., 34
Stanley Almodovar III, 23
Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, 20
Juan Ramon Guerrero, 22
Eric Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, 36
Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz, 22
Luis S. Vielma, 22
Kimberly Morris, 37
Darryl Roman Burt II, 29
Eddie Jamoldroy Justice, 30
Denoka Deidra Drayton, 32
Alejandro Barrios Martinez, 21
Anthony Luis Laureanodisla, 25
Jean Carlos Mendez Perez, 35
Franky Jimmy Dejesus Velazquez, 50
Amanda Alvear, 25
Martin Benitez Torres, 33
Luis Daniel Wilson-Leon, 37
Mercedez Marisol Flores, 26
Xavier Emmanuel Serrano Rosado, 35
Gilberto Ramon Silva Menendez, 25
Simon Adrian Carrillo Fernandez, 31
Oscar A Aracena-Montero, 26
Enrique L. Rios, Jr. 25

“Edward Sotomayor (was) one of the funniest and nicest guy(s),” friend Nate Carrick told WFTV.

RELATED: Death toll rises to 50 dead, another 53 injured, in terrorist attack at Orlando nightclub

Drag queen Pandora Boxx also shared condolences and shock over Sotomayor’s death on Instagram.

“My heart is broken,” Boxx wrote. “Eddie Sotomayor was one of the kindest, sweetest people I’ve met.”

Almodovar, a Clermont resident, previously lived in Massachusetts, WFXT reported, citing his Facebook page. Condolences poured in on the page after it was converted to a memorial.

“I can’t believe this,” wrote BreAna Eckman. “You were always bubbly and super down to earth, and such a sweet guy. You and your family will always be in my prayers.”

RELATED: This is how close the Orlando terrorist came to killing another innocent victim

“You would know when Stanley entered a room,” friend Haze Ramirez told NPR’s The Two-Way. “He can turn my mood by a conversation. … He made me feel like it was perfectly fine being who I was.”

Ocasio-Capo worked at a Starbucks inside a Target in Kissimmee, according to a co-worker’s post on Facebook.

“He lit up any area he worked in, especially Starbucks,” wrote Claudia Mason. “So sad that his life was cut so short by such an evil person! Pray for Omar’s family.”

Juan Ramon Guerrero’s cousin, Robert Guerrero, told the Associated Press the 22-year-old worked as a telemarketer and recently started attending the University of Central Florida.

“He was always this amazing person (and) he was like a big brother to me,” Robert Guerrero told the wire service. “He was never the type to go out to parties, (he) would rather stay home and care for his niece and nephew.”

Ortiz-Rivera lived in downtown Orlando with his husband of about one year, his cousin, Orlando Gonzalez, told The New York Times.

“His husband called me in the morning,” Orlando Gonzalez told the newspaper. “He was hysterical trying to find him.”

He described his cousin as “a goofball” who enjoyed dancing.

“He was very artistic,” Orlando Gonzalez told The Times. “He was all about interior design. He actually knew how to cut hair and stuff.”

According to Gonzalez-Cruz’s Facebook page, the 22-year-old worked at UPS and went to high school in New Jersey.

Vielma worked at Universal Studios Orlando, according to his Facebook page, which has been converted to a memorial. “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling paid tribute to him on Twitter.

“Luis Vielma worked on the Harry Potter ride at Universal,” she wrote. “He was 22 years old. I can’t stop crying. #Orlando”

Friends took to social media to mourn him.

Luis Vielma, you were one of the kindest people I have ever come to know. At…Posted by Will Randle on Sunday, June 12, 2016.

“You had your entire life in front of you,” friend Will Randle wrote in a memorial posted on Facebook. “I am so incredibly angry and outraged that (that) was stolen from you on a night that should have been carefree and full of fun.”

https://twitter.com/katiezavadski/status/742171272180846593

Morris worked as a bouncer at Pulse, according to The Daily Beast.

Eddie Jamoldroy Justice texted his mother after the shooting started. She then spent most of the day Sunday looking for any information on his condition.

The story of his text of “Mommy I love you. In club they shooting,” is one of the heart wrenching moments of the horrific attack.

His mother, Mina Justice, tried calling him, but he didn’t answer. Then she tried to text him, telling him that she’s had called 911 and help was on the way.

They exchanged more messages, including one saying that the gunman had come into the hideout in the bathroom. The most jarring message was his to his mother, “I’m gonna die.” Just over 10 minutes after that text, Justice’s texts to his mother stopped, The New York Daily News reported.

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