From Queen to rock bands: tributes pour in for Canada mass shooting victims

A message of condolence from Queen Elizabeth II and musical tributes for the victims of the worst mass shooting in Canadian history poured in on Tuesday as the death toll continued to rise.

According to public broadcaster CBC, police uncovered in the rubble of a home burned to the ground by the suspect the remains of a couple reported missing, bringing the total number of victims to 20.

The gunman, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, had begun his rampage late Saturday in the seaside village of Portapique, Nova Scotia, dying 14 hours later in a hail of police gunfire outside Halifax, 100 kilometers (60 miles) away.

Queen Elizabeth II said she and Prince Philip "have been deeply saddened by the appalling events in Nova Scotia." Canada's head of state also paid tribute to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers -- one of whom died, and another wounded -- and others who "selflessly responded to these devastating attacks." Across Canada, flags flew at half-mast, while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau proclaimed: "Today we are all Nova Scotians."