AURORA (USA), July 24: Gun sales in Colorado have soared in the aftermath of the shooting tragedy in Aurora that claimed 12 lives and left 58 wounded, the Denver Post reported on Tuesday.

Background checks carried out on customers as they buy guns were up 41 per cent in the wake of Friday's shooting at a packed cinema in the Colorado town, the newspaper reported.

There was also a spike in people seeking training for a concealed carry permit, the report said. Carrying a handgun or other weapon in public in a concealed manner is legal with a permit in 49 of the 50 US states.

“It’s been insane,” Jake Meyers, an employee at Rocky Mountain Guns and Ammo in the town of Parker, told the newspaper, saying there were 15 to 20 people waiting outside the store when he arrived for work just hours after the shooting.

“A lot of it is people saying, 'I didn't think I needed a gun, but now I do,'” Meyers was quoted as saying. “When it happens in your backyard, people start reassessing — ‘Hey, I go to the movies.'”—AFP