Sept. 16, 2013 was another dark morning for America. A lone gunman in Washington, D.C. opened fire in a United States Navy Yard around 8 a.m.

Initially, he was believed to have killed 12 people and injured eight others. Now, the kill count has updated to 13. This was the second deadliest mass murder attack on a United States military base, aside from the Fort Hood shooting in 2009.

The shooter, Aaron Alexis, was doing part-time work on the Navy Yard helping the military update computer systems. The manager from the store where the gun that was used for the murders was purchased said that a background check was run on Alexis and it came back clear.

It has been said numerous times now that multiple background checks were made to check Alexis’s criminal background, and they all came back clear. Since there has been nothing found, experts are relying on Alexis’s personal history to determine the cause of his mass shooting.

As the story has been told and reported, it is believed that Alexis drove to the Navy Yard that morning, walked into Building 197 and went to the fourth floor, which overlooked an atrium that was filled with people. Looking down at all the people Alexis opened fire. From his position, he could see the atrium and the attached hallways; which was his tactical standpoint in an effort to make it out alive. He chose the spot so he could see when people were coming towards him.

Alexis was confronted by the first wave of D.C. police offers and wounded one of them. He was also confronted by Naval Criminal Investigative Service, NCIS, and another group of officers. He managed to shoot an officer and confiscate his weapon while attempting to flee the scene.

Alexis continued to shoot down the hallways and stairwells as he attempted to escape. Once he made it out of the atrium, police units searched in an effort to find him. It was around 15 to 20 minutes before contact was made, in an upper floor hallway by a D.C. police officer and a U.S. Park Police Officer, where they proceeded to open fire and killed Alexis.

The families of the victims continue to mourn for their lost loved ones as the nation mourns with them.

This is a devastating loss to citizens of the United States, and I feel that we should all take a moment out of our lives to honor those that fell to this unfortunate incident. Life is a precious thing that shouldn’t be taken for granted, and this incident is just another example of why.