‘We need immediate help.’ 911 call details harrowing moments during UNC shooting

“We need immediate help,” a caller from Caudill Labs begged a 911 operator on Monday afternoon, setting off a manhunt for a gunman and a three-hour lockdown of UNC-Chapel Hill and surrounding public schools.

Just after 1 p.m., local dispatchers were notified of an “active shooter” on campus.

The 911 call, which was released by UNC on Thursday afternoon, detail the frantic scene as people in Caudill Labs recognized a man with a gun.

“There’s an active shooter on campus,” the caller said.

Moments before, Zijie Yan, a professor in the Department of Applied Physical Sciences, had been shot and killed.

“Close the doors! Close the doors and stay inside!” the caller shouted to other people in the building. “There’s an active shooter.”

“They need to lock the campus down,” the caller pleaded with the dispatcher.

At 1:03 p.m., the campus received the first alert of an “armed and dangerous” person on or near campus.

Students and staff rushed into lecture halls and piled into closed bathrooms to take shelter where they remained for several hours.

At 4:14 p.m. UNC police issued the “all clear,” but advised students to stay away from Caudill Laboratories.

The caller, whose name was not disclosed for privacy reasons, was in Caudill Labs at the time of the shooting and said she knew the shooter.

“I know exactly who it is. I know who the student is. His name is Tailei Qi and he has a gun and he’s on campus,” she says.

The caller then goes on to spell Qi’s name for the dispatcher and say he was last seen wearing jeans and a gray T-shirt.

Qi worked on the same research team as Yan and had previously expressed frustration with his work in the lab on social media. In an Aug. 18, 2022, tweet, he appeared to describe a conflict within in his lab. “Just have a talk with my PI and get his promise. … He should have more experience to handle with these girls and tattletales,” Qi wrote.

The caller also told the dispatcher that Qi’s picture could be found on the Applied Physics program’s website. His image was later distributed by police.

Around 2:30 p.m. on Monday, Qi was apprehended by authorities and charged with first degree murder and possession of a firearm on educational property.

On Tuesday, he made his first appearance in court. He remains in custody at the Orange County Jail without bond.

This story was originally published August 31, 2023 at 3:08 PM with the headline "‘We need immediate help.’ 911 call details harrowing moments during UNC shooting."