WASHINGTON — The man who runs the Hippodrome Theater in Baltimore has strong ties to Pulse, the Orlando nightclub that on Sunday became the scene of the worst mass shooting in U.S. history.

“It is devastating — the worst nightmare you could ever imagine,” Ron Legler told The Baltimore Sun.

Legler used to work with the Florida Theatrical Association and co-founded Pulse in 2004. He and his friend Barbara Poma opened Pulse as a memorial to Poma’s late brother, who died of HIV, The Sun reports. He gave up ownership in the club when he moved to Baltimore in 2014.

Legler tells The Sun that after the shooter opened fire, he immediately “started getting text messages from people inside the club.”

“There are employees of the club we have not been able to reach,” he said.

Police say Omar Mateen shot and killed at least 50 people and injured 53 others before he was killed by officers.

Legler posted a message on Facebook saying he is “devastated and heartbroken,” and that he is “praying for my Pulse Orlando Family and for the City of Orlando.”