Aug 10, 2009 7:44 pm US/Eastern
911 Tapes From Hudson Crash Released
Dozens Of Callers Flood Police Lines, Describe The Tragic Crash Between Helicopter, Small Plane
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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New York mayor Mike Bloomberg (3rd left) gives a press conference near the Hudson river in lower Manhattan surrounded by emergency personnel August 8, 2009, in New York City.
Chris Hondros/Getty Images
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People watch as rescue boats search the area where a small airplane and helicopter collided over the Hudson River August 8, 2009, in Hoboken, New Jersey.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
Immediately after the Hudson River tragedy unfolded, dozens of witnesses flooded the phone lines to call 911. Many of those calls were released to the public for the first time Monday.
Some were chaotic and others were calm.
"Fourth and River Street. It's in the river, people are running towards," one woman is heard telling police.
"It's right in the Hudson river, close to Hoboken," a man calmly told a dispatcher.
And even though some didn't get all of the information correct, as heard when one caller informed police that it was in fact two helicopters that collided, dozens tried to describe the horrifying scene to operators.
"You said it was a helicopter struck and landed in the water?" a dispatcher is heard asking a caller.
"Yeah, it was just struck by a small plane and the helicopter went straight down, and I'm not sure what happened to the plane," the caller replied.
Said a different witness: "I see a couple boats, I see a couple pieces of shrapnel. There's nobody coming up towards the surface, I don't see anybody coming up."
"Do you see anybody injured?" the operator asked that caller.
"Oh my God, they're probably totally injured," the caller replied.
"It's landed or it crashed?" the operator asked.
"It's gone! It crashed!" the caller said.
And then that same woman described the tragic aftermath.
Caller: "It's in the water. Boats are going towards it."
Operator: "Hold on a minute, One Marine View Plaza?"
Caller: "Yes, it's down, it's gone, that person, I have no idea."
Operator: "A helicopter in the water, you say?"
Caller: "Yes! It crashed, it crashed, it's disintegrated. It's sunk!"
Both the NTSB and police are asking anyone else who witnessed the crash to contact them immediately so they can continue to piece together the tragic accident.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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