Update:
Details of the harrowing massacre of nine people during a church Bible study play out in chilling detail amid a photocopied log of communications released Thursday by Charleston police.
To view the documents and photos provided to the media, go to postandcourier.com/Roof-documents.
In a dispatch log from the night of June 17, terrified callers describe the grisly moments a shooter guns down worshippers inside Emanuel AME Church's fellowship hall. The calls are made seemingly by two people — one inside the fellowship hall who is witnessing the carnage and one hiding in the adjoining secretary and pastor's office.
One is identified as Polly Sheppard, a 70-year-old who cowered under a table while watching a young white man gun down her fellow worshippers.
“People shot down (here).”
“Shot pastor.”
“Man is still here.”
“Lower level.”
“Man shot pastor.”
The log is unclear at times about who is talking as the rapid-fire communications take place. At one point, the log says: “Shooter in office.” However, earlier accounts have said the shooter remained in the fellowship hall.
“Female is hiding under the table.”
“She said he is comin'.”
“Young white male.”
“Male is reloading.”
Sheppard has told The Post and Courier that she hid under a table while watching the shooter try to fire more rounds.
“The incident is in progress.”
The number of shots fired? “So many.”
Sheppard has said that when the shooter's gun wouldn't fire, he fled. A retired nurse, she scanned the bodies, the blood, and thought she was the only one left alive. The log picks up:
“So many people dead I think.”
“Suspect came in through back door.”
Police race toward an active shooter while trying to gauge where survivors are located in the church. Exactly three minutes after the first witness calls, the log shows, a police officer arrives at Emanuel AME. It appears barely a minute has passed since the shooter left.
The log then includes a separate call from a female hiding under a desk with her daughter.
Earlier accounts have described how the Rev. Clementa Pinckney's wife locked her husband's office door when the gunfire erupted, then hid under a desk with their young daughter as the shots burst out just on the other side of his door.
The log continues:
“Can hear people moaning outside the office.”
“Suspect went out the back door.”
The log, coupled with unredacted portions of police supplemental reports released Thursday, describe the suspect's clothing and officers' actions as they arrive to secure the scene.
They quickly discover bodies of the dead and the type of weapon used. At first, seven people are dead. Two victims are alive when police arrive to find bodies and blood covering the floor. One victim, described as in his 30s, died as an officer tried to render aid.
Among those killed, Tywanza Sanders was closest to that description at 26 years old. He died after pleading with the shooter, “We mean you no harm.” His mother, Felicia, played dead beside him while clutching her 11-year-old granddaughter, saving them both.
A second victim still showed signs of life as emergency medical responders checked each victim. He died on the way to Medical University Hospital, the log shows.
The Rev. Daniel Simmons Sr. was rushed to MUSC but died during surgery.
Even after police arrive, Jennifer Pinckney remains under the office desk, terrified and protecting her child. She hears an officer outside the door but hesitates to open it.
One officer describes the carnage as “a massive crime scene.”
Seven minutes after the first call, paramedics are requested to set up across the street. One minute later, another call summons them ASAP.
Soon, multiple coroners are en route. Someone discusses contacting a chaplain. They are “going to need several.”
The log then reveals the chaos and efforts by police to find the shooter and protect residents in the aftermath.
They set up a command post at the Courtyard Marriott hotel across the street from the gruesome scene as police field a flurry of citizens' calls about potential suspects in the area and work to decipher which ones are relevant and where the shooter might have fled.
One officer sees a man, Myra Thompson's husband, running through the muggy darkness toward the church. She had been leading the Bible study that night just hours after being licensed to minister in her church. Now she is dead inside. The officer explains to the distraught man that he cannot enter, directing him instead to the hotel where friends and family are massing.
Amid the desperation, police receive a bomb threat.
They dispatch rooftop surveillance and summon a specialized bomb team to hunt for suspicious packages in the area of Anson and Calhoun streets. At the same time, they launch a massive hunt for suspects both in the shooting and bomb threat, unsure what is coming next in moments filled with so much shock and terror.
http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20151029/PC16/151029233
how terrible
