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911 tapes reveal horror at mall

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By HENRY C. JACKSON / The Associated Press

Wednesday, Dec 12, 2007 - 01:08:00 pm CST

Pop. Pop. Pop. The sound of three rapid gunshots were the first, chilling sounds of the terror going on inside Westroads Mall on Wednesday when a teenage gunman opened fire, killing eight people before committing suicide.

The next sound the operator heard was a gasp.

“911. What’s your emergency?” the operator asks.

Story Photo
An Omaha Police Officer stands outside his patrol car briefly while manning one of the entrances to the Von Maur store at the Westroads shopping mall in Omaha the morning after a rampage that killed eight people. (Eric Gregory)

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See all Westroads Mall shooting coverage
Von Maur manager recounts tense moments following shootingw

“Yes my name is Jodi,” Jodi Longmeyer, the store’s human resources manager, begins the 29-minute 911 call by saying. “I’m with Von Maur, and I have people who are down and injured who’ve been shot.”

She’s not crying or in hysterics. The shock of the situation calmed her, she said Thursday night by phone, a day after she’d walked and crawled from the third-floor lingerie department into a secure room on the same level of Von Maur once the gunfire erupted.

“I think I was just under shock, and I was just trying to give them as much information as possible,” she said.

She did. She described the shooter as a tall, white man with a large gun, mid-20s, dark jacket, no hat. She stayed on the line, held on when asked, didn’t panic.

“Hold on just a second Jodi ...” the operator said, 20 minutes in.

“OK.” Then she gasps. “Oh my gosh. Yeah, there’s ... wait a minute. It looks like the gun is laying over by customer service. There’s an officer there now. I wonder if he ...”

“Customer service on the third level?”

“Correct. It looks like he might have killed himself.”

“OK. Do you see him laying by a gun?”

“I see him laying by that gun with blood in (inaudible).”

She hasn’t heard the tape yet, Longmeyer said. But this morning, she’s being interviewed for a “Today” show segment. Other interviews, she knows, will follow. They’re going to play it.

“I think I’ll be shocked again,” she said.

-- Cory Matteson

There was only eerie silence in return. Then, more gunshots. Pop. Pop. Pop.

“Hello? 911!” the operator says.

The shots continue. Two more, then a pause. Three more seconds of silence. Then five more shots in rapid succession. Then another short pause, and two more pops.

Silence follows, except for the clicking of the 911 operator typing on his computer.

Then the gunshots resume. Pop. Pop. Pop.

“Hello?” the operator says, before the line goes dead.

The 911 tapes released by the Omaha Police Department on Thursday offer a vivid look into the horror inside the busy Von Maur department store at the mall. Some of the calls came from loved ones who have merely heard about the shooting. But others, like a woman who dove behind a clothing rack in fear, or an anonymous caller within earshot of shooter Robert A. Hawkins’ rampage, offer a voice from the scene.

Here are other excerpts from 911 calls:

————

Operator: Dang. Hello?

Three gunshots — Pop. Pop. Pop.

Operator: I can’t ... I’m still hearing stuff. Hello?

Gunshot — Pop.

Silence.

———

Operator: 911. What’s your emergency?

Woman’s voice: I’m at Von Maur and I think there’s shots being fired all over the place.

Operator: Yeah. We’re on our way out there. Anybody been hit?

Woman’s voice: I haven’t seen anything. I am hiding in a clothes rack.

Operator: OK. We’re on our way out there, maam.

Woman’s voice: I mean, there’s been like, 50 gunshots.

Operator: I know. I was one the line with one, so ...

Woman’s voice: OK. Fine.

————

Operator: 911. What’s your emergency?

Operator: Hello, 911?

Woman’s voice: Hi. I am at Von Maur.

Operator: Yeah, we’re on our way out there maam. Anybody seen the person that’s doing the shooting?

Woman’s voice: I have not. But I am very scared.

Operator: All right. We’re on our way out maam.

Woman’s voice: OK.

————

Associated Press Writer Sophia Tareen contributed to this report from Omaha.


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Megan wrote on December 7, 2007 12:08 am:
" It is so eerie to hear the gunshots in the background of these calls. It is so terrible what has happened and my heart goes out to all involved. My thoughts and prayers are with all victims and their families. "

 Megan wrote on December 7, 2007 12:50 am:
" There is no reason to post these audio files. These poor families have enough to deal with without forcing them to listen to that. "

 ryan wrote on December 7, 2007 1:48 am:
" Simply chilling. Two days later, I still have all the victims and their families in my prayers. Stay strong through this great time of hardship. "

 Trish wrote on December 7, 2007 7:39 am:
" All these frantic, scared people calling, but no direction from 911 as to what to do? "Take cover, hide, and wait for the police that are on the way???" Yes, their phones were ringing off the hook, but I'm disturbed at the seeming lack of empathy for these callers. It would only have taken seconds to say take cover and wait for the police... "

 Remembering wrote on December 7, 2007 7:43 am:
" I hope we can turn the focus away from the coward who terrorized so many lives on Wednesday, December 6, 2007. My thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the victims as well as those who lived through this nightmare. We know who the real heros are!!! God Bless you all! "

 Disgusted wrote on December 7, 2007 9:31 am:
" WHY do we need to read or hear about these calls? This young man left a note saying he was going out in glory. He is right because he is glorified with his name mentioned by constant followup. This article gives glory to the killer by showing the horror he created and wanted. Exactly what he wanted to accomplish. Start a policy that when something like this happens don't dwell on the shooter or his past or his friends. Don't even mention his name just say a KILLER. Then those that think they want to copy-cat will realize they will not receive the glory they crave. "

 GCA wrote on December 7, 2007 10:43 am:
" I still don't understand why we humans want to know all the tragic things in life but when something good happens we think that it is an everday thing and it isn't the bad things are an everyday thing. What if we had more good events do you think there would be less bad events posted? "

 So sorry! wrote on December 7, 2007 11:27 am:
" This is truly a terrible tragedy for the families, for the mall, for the community and all of Nebraska. What a way to make headlines. The young man got what he wanted....a moment of fame. "

 john wrote on December 7, 2007 12:11 pm:
" I understand the tradgety that has happened in Omaha. My thoughts and prayers go out to the families affected by this. But also, why are we giving this killer the recognition he wanted. This is exactly what he wanted, to make headline news. And he did. Lets stop recognizing this killer and listening to all of his life long problems, and focus on the people that were murdered, and the families it has affected. Report on them, not this sicko. Again, my heart goes out to all of you that were affected by this. "

 Concerned citizen wrote on December 7, 2007 12:28 pm:
" I agree about how wrong it is to have these audio tapes out to the public. You cant turn on the TV without seeing something about this. We are giving the shooter what he wanted!!!! This is why kids do these acts because all their life they have been a wallflower and by doing something horrible they know their name and face will be on every TV and in every paper....they WILL be famous. Stop giving them this attention and allow the families to turn on the TV without having to relive this horrible day! "

 Two sides wrote on December 7, 2007 12:28 pm:
" And of course, if OPD had not released these tapes (and the media shared them), somebody would have been making accusations about a cover up, suing for their release, etc. Full disclosure--no matter how disturbing--seems to be what many want. I too, wish this stuff didn't have to be release, but you know if they didn't, somebody would have made a stink about it. In regards to the 911 operator, I'm sure his phone was ringing off the hook and he wanted to wade through the calls to find something that was of help to the responders--suspect information! In my humble opinion, he did the best he could in the stressful situation. If he gives advice that turns out to be wrong, more public outcry! "

 Trish... wrote on December 7, 2007 2:03 pm:
" I think the idea of taking cover is a no brainer. Anybody in the area would be taking cover/running as a natural instinct. Dispatchers only get a small portion of information regarding what is happening in emergencies such as this. Therefore, they have to be careful what they advise people to do. They may inadvertently put people in more danger by doing so. In regards for their lack of empathy, what are they supposed to do? These people were being shot at! They need to get the information to the emergency responders first. That is the priority. "

 M wrote on December 7, 2007 3:34 pm:
" It's important to know the killer’s history so that when other people exhibit similar things that more red flags go up. It’s better to try to prevent the tragedy rather than worry about how much attention they are getting after the fact. "

 MR wrote on December 7, 2007 5:03 pm:
" The 911 operators have a job to do, but simply human kindness would not take an extra second to say, for instance, "Are you hurt?" or "Is anyone near you hurt?" I think of the teacher at columbine who might have lived if the kids hiding in the room with him had known how to stop the bleeding. Yes it is important to find out if they had seen the shooter. But it sounded as though this operator were cutting people off mid-sentence and hurrying them through the phone calls. The woman who said "I'm very scared," didn't get much more than the brush-off and that's unfortunate. OnStar could have done a better job than this operator. "

 shocked wrote on December 7, 2007 5:20 pm:
" It is awful that this has happened to anyone it shocks me that it is so close to home. My thoughts and prayers are with all the families. One note the OPD did the best they could do and I commend what they have done and I hope that everyone realizes how they worked hard and as fast as they could. We should all just realize how scary of a world it is and we should never take ANY Day for granted because this could happen any day to any one of us. "

 Quit pointing fingers wrote on December 7, 2007 8:32 pm:
" To Trisha and everyone else in this post talking bad about the dispatchers, as a former 911 dispatcher I will tell you that there was so much going on in that small room; frantic 911 calls - so many, they all couldn't be answered, frantic officers, not to mention the inquiring family and friends, and the media. As a dispatcher, you HAVE to be able to keep calm and organized... you have no time to think, no time to breathe, no time to show your emotions and stress. It was very important that those dispatchers found out as much info as possible in a very short period of time so that the officers knew exactly what was going on and what to expect and look for. It is a mentally and physically draining job and they absolutely do not get enough credit for what they do. You cannot let the job, the calls, the situations, get to you or you will go crazy. So please, stop critizing the dispatchers, law enforcement, family, HHS, whatever... and remember that it was the choice of 1 person and 1 person only. Let's quit pointing fingers and placing blame and remember that there are many people out there suffering from their loss. My heart goes out to the family and friends and they will continue to be in my prayers. My prayers go out to everyone involved, family, friends, victims, law enforcement, medical personnel, and witnesses. "

 Emergency Services wrote on December 8, 2007 3:59 am:
" I agree with Quit Pointing Fingers. Until you have done the job, don't be quick to critique. Listening to the tapes they did one helluva job. There is only one person to blame, that is the murderer of innocent people. It isn't anyone or anything else. "

 Karen wrote on December 8, 2007 8:30 am:
" These tapes bring tears to my eyes. The terror those poor people went through. Prayers to them all. "

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