The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department released 48 calls made to 911 in the wake of the deadly shooting at University of North Carolina-Charlotte Tuesday afternoon, CBS affiliate WBTV reported. Thirty-two of the 48 calls made to 911 operators, which were edited by authorities to protect identities, were received within 16 minutes. The calls range in length from 16 seconds to three minutes.
The calls give a sense of the chaos unfolding as students fled or hunkered down—and desperately sought help for the wounded.
“We need police. We have an active shooter in Kennedy,” one caller said, indicating he was relaying information from the teacher who was in the classroom where it happened. “We heard five shots. We don’t know how many shooters.”
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Asked how many students were hurt, the caller said: “We don’t know. We don’t know.”
Another caller was asked if she needed police, firefighters or paramedics. She replied: “All of it.”
At least two callers were students fleeing from the classroom where it happened. One said the gunman was wearing black and carrying a pistol, adding: “He was still shooting when we were leaving.”
Another, sounding out of breath, said: “There is someone shooting. … He ran into the classroom I was in.”
The panic also forced students to flee nearby buildings as word spread quickly.
“I was in there just trying to print something out and someone ran in and shouted shooter,” said a caller who fled a nearby building. “I was just sitting at the computer. Someone came in yelling, so I ran.”
Multiple callers described the gunman as a white man with dark hair who wore dark clothes and opened fire with a pistol. Two people were killed in the attack, and four others were injured.
The suspect, 22-year-old Trystan Terrell, has been charged with two counts of murder, four counts of attempted murder, four counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, possession of firearm on educational property and discharging firearm on educational property.
His motive wasn’t clear. Terrell had been a student at the university but withdrew before the end of this semester, officials said. Authorities said he targeted the Kennedy building specifically, but that detectives haven’t determined if he chose the class or individuals as targets.
Terrell, who’s been assigned a public defender, waived his right to appear at his first court hearing Thursday. His next bond hearing will take place May 15th.
