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‘My wife is dying’: 911 recordings detail terror as Allen mall mass shooting unfolded

Throughout every call, several phones could be heard ringing in the background.

Second after second, the calls came in. People wailed over the phone as they detailed bullet wounds and pleaded for help. Some whispered as they hid in bathrooms and dressing rooms, asking if it was safe to come out. Others reported their loved ones were at the mall, but they couldn’t get a hold of them.

Operators hurried through each call, repeating the same frantic questions: 911, are you calling about the shooting? Are you injured or with anybody who’s injured?

Callers reported seeing victims shot in the leg, the stomach, the chest. Operators urged them to pack wounds to stop the bleeding, promising over and over again that police and paramedics were on their way.

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Throughout every call, several phones could be heard ringing in the background.

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The 911 calls obtained Monday by The Dallas Morning News revealed the audible terror of the May 6 mass shooting as it unfolded at Allen Premium Outlets. Eight people were killed. At least seven others were injured. Hundreds more were traumatized.

The victims killed were identified as Cho Kyu Song, 37; Kang Shin Young, 35; James Cho, 3; Daniela Mendoza, 11; Sofia Mendoza, 8; Christian LaCour, 20; Elio Cumana-Rivas, 32; and Aishwarya Thatikonda, 26.

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The shooter was killed by a police officer who was nearby on an unrelated call.

Authorities say the gunfire lasted less than five minutes.

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‘My wife is dying’

At the start of one call, a 911 operator reported that a child had been shot.

A man, sobbing, confirmed he was standing in front of the H&M.

“Please, please, I don’t want to lose two more,” he cries.

The operator says help is on the way and asks whether the child is still breathing. The man replies “one of them is, the other one’s not,” adding one victim was shot in the leg and the other in the back. The operator asks if the man has a clean, dry cloth or towel to put on the wounds.

“Send somebody here,” he cries.

“They’re getting there as fast as they can, but I need you to control the bleeding,” the operator says.

“Send an ambulance,” the man begs again. “Please, I’ve been waiting for 20 f---ing minutes, my wife is dying.”

“Sir, you’re not the only one dealing with this, we’re getting help to you as fast as we can. Can you put some pressure on the wounds at all for anybody?”

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“People are helping me, but she’s dying — let’s go.”

First responders directed to multiple stores

From Francesca’s to H&M to The Cosmetics Company Store, other callers conveyed their fear to 911 operators as victims lay bleeding.

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In one of the first calls to report an injury, a woman says she saw a man with a gunshot wound inside Francesca’s.

“Can you describe the injuries to me?” the operator asks.

“I think it’s in his chest,” she responds. “I’m in my car. I can’t even get back into my boutique, I’m locked out. … I’m scared.”

“Are you with the guy that was shot?”

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“No, I left him in there because I wasn’t sure if he was the shooter.”

The first caller to report an injury at H&M describes a woman shot in the stomach.

“Can you please press something on it to stop the bleeding?”

“We did, we do.”

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“OK, I’ve got help on the way.”

The next caller says they saw a person who was shot in the back — but still breathing and conscious — in front of New Balance. Then, a man reports a security guard was just shot at The Cosmetics Company Store.

Another caller says a man inside Ralph Lauren was shot at, but not struck.

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“But we do think he might be having a heart attack,” she says. “He’s either having a really bad panic attack or he’s having a heart attack.”

Lingering lockdown

People inside the mall begged for information as minutes passed and police worked to clear each store. If 911 callers said they weren’t with an injured person, operators told them to keep themselves safe but to stay put until police told them to leave.

One caller said she was in a store with about 30 customers, but confirmed none of them were injured.

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“Keep the doors locked until the police can tell you that it’s time to clear out … I gotta let you go,” the operator replies, jumping to another call.

The uncertainty of the situation caused panic for people inside and outside the mall. One caller said she was concerned about her son, who was hiding in a car and was unsure whether he could leave. “He’s in a hot car, he’s in a hot car,” she repeats to the operator.

“I understand that ma’am, but there’s more dangerous things going on right now,” the operator replies. “Just give it a few minutes till the police say something.”

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“I just don’t want him to get hurt,” the caller says.

A different caller said their friends were near someone with a gun by the outlet’s Tommy Hilfiger store, adding they didn’t know whether “he’s a good or bad guy.”

Another person reported people at the back door, asking whether it was cops.

“Ma’am, I’m not sure, I don’t know where you are,” the operator replies. “They’re all over the place. If you are not injured or anybody else I need you to stay in place and lock the doors. … I’ve gotta let you go.”

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People pleaded for direction. One caller said the stores were closing and they were being asked to leave. “The managers are calling for the store people to close the store, we have to go outside,” the caller says.

“OK, if you’re in an area you need to go somewhere safe. If they’re not letting you in, I don’t know what to tell ya,” the operator says.

“I’ve got victims calling.”

Staff writer Lauren McGaughy contributed to this report.

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