LISTEN: Uvalde elementary school teacher’s harrowing 911 call to report active shooter while begging operator for help and yelling at students to ‘get in the room’ over hail of gunfire
- A desperate 911 call made by a teacher at Uvalde elementary during last spring’s massacre has been released
- Audibly hysterical, the unnamed teacher can be heard begging for help as shots fired by teenage gunman Salvador Ramos, 18, ring out in the background
- Audio of the call was obtained and released Tuesday by a Texas news outlet – part of a wider leak that showed cops’ cowardly response to the May 24 attack
- The leak saw 82 minutes of never-before-seen security video of the incident made public, showing officers waiting to engage the gunman for 77 minutes
- The leak has since sparked outrage due to cops’ failure to confront the gunman as he engaged in the killings behind an unlocked door as other calls flooded in
- The phone call leaked Tuesday served the first report police received of the active shooter, when he was firing at the school from outside the building
A desperate 911 call made by a teacher at Uvalde elementary during last spring’s massacre has been released – one of several made inside the school during the deadly mass shooting.
Audibly hysterical, the unnamed female teacher can be heard begging for help in the harrowing clip – all while deafening shots fired by teenage gunman Salvador Ramos ring out in the background.
Audio of the call was obtained and released Tuesday by a Texas news outlet – part of a wider leak that showed cops’ cowardly response to the May 24 attack.
The leak saw 82 minutes of never-before-seen security video of the incident made public, showing officers waiting outside the classroom where the killings were taking place for 77 minutes.
The attack saw the lives of 19 students and two teachers – all inside the classroom at the time – snuffed out. It is not immediately clear whether the teacher in the audio recording was one of the two slain.
The leak has since sparked outrage due to its confirmation of cops’ failure to confront the gunman as he engaged in the killings behind an unlocked door as other calls from trapped victims continued to flood in.
The phone call leaked Tuesday served the first report police received of the active shooter, when he was firing at the school from outside the building after crashing his truck nearby.
The call – synced in real time with footage taken from outside the school – is extremely disturbing, with the shaken educator shouting at children to take shelter inside the classroom as a seemingly endless stream of gunshots can be heard.
The phone call leaked Tuesday served as the first report police received of the active shooter, when he was firing at the school from outside the building after crashing his truck nearby. Audibly hysterical, the unnamed female teacher can be heard begging for help in the harrowing clip – all while deafening shots fired by a teenage gunman ring out in the background
‘I can’t see him! I cannot see him!’ the educator can be heard shouting at first in the clip over the sound of approaching gunshots, her voice shaking with tangible fear.
‘He’s shooting!’ she yells to the dispatcher – whose voice is muted in the clip – audibly frustrated.
She proceeds to plead for help from the dispatcher, asking the official what to do. ‘The kids are running!’ she shouts, becoming hysterical as Ramos is filmed approaching the school.
Video shows Ramos (marked by arrow) walking toward the school while firing multiple rounds. The unnamed female teacher placed the call as Ramos approached, pleading for help. The call cuts out once Ramos enters the building three minutes late at 11:33 am
Seconds later, the gunshots become even more deafening.
‘Oh, my god,’ the teacher, now crying, can be heard remarking as the chaos unfolds.
At this point, Ramos is just outside the school, and a hail of loud fire rings out.
‘Get down!’ the teacher shouts with a blaring sense of urgency. She proceeds to command children to take shelter in their classrooms.
‘Get in your rooms!’ she repeats in the heart-raising clip, yelling so loud now that the audio of the call clips, distorting the woman’s voice. ‘Get in your rooms!’ she again repeats.
A sporadic stream of gunfire can be heard at this point in the clip.
During a brief pause in the turmoil, the teacher – who has not been identified – can be heard asking another colleague or student if the gunman was inside the building.
‘Is he inside?’ she fearfully whispers.
The query serves the final exchange between the teacher and the operator, with the call cutting out as Ramos, an 18-year-old Uvalde resident, enters the school at 11:33am.
After the dubbed audio, the footage shows the gunman, dressed in all black, entering the building from a side-door unimpeded, with his face visible.
After the dubbed audio, the footage shows the gunman, dressed in all black, entering the building from a side-door unimpeded, with his face visible.
Leaked surveillance footage shows Salvador Ramos, 18, sauntering through the halls of Robb Elementary School on May 24 carrying an AR-15
As he begins to disappear down a wide hallway, he drops his gun by his side to brush back his long hair en route to classrooms 111 and 112 where the massacre unfolded
Ramos begins to disappear out of the view of the camera. This is the last time we see him in the leaked footage
The first officers who arrived on the scene just minutes after Ramos, initially attempted to charge the classroom
The footage shows the gunman tout an assault-style rifle while walking down the hall, as he searches for victims to gun down.
A minute-by-minute break down of how cops waited outside class while kids called 911 after gunman walked through door that had been propped open by a teacher
11.28am: Gunman crashes truck, gets out of car with AR-15. He is seen by witnesses in a funeral home next to the school who tell 911 they see a man with a gun walking towards the school
11.31: Gunman is now in the parking lot of the school hiding in between vehicles, shooting at the building
11.32: School resource officer who arrives in a patrol car after hearing 911 call about truck crash drives past the shooter
11.33: Gunman enters the school and begins shooting into room 111/room 112. He shoots more than 100 rounds
11.35: Three police officers enter the same propped-open door as the suspect from the Uvalde PD. They were later followed by another four, making total of seven officers on scene. Three initial officers went directly to the door and got grazing wounds from him while the door was closed. They hang back
11.37: Another 16 rounds fired inside the classroom by the gunman
11.51: Police sergeant and USB agents arrive
12.03: Officers continue to arrive in the hallway. As many as 19 officers in that hallway at that time. At the same time, a girl from inside the classroom calls 911 and whispers that she is in room 112
12.10pm: The same girl calls back and advises ‘there are multiple dead’
12.13pm: The same girl calls again
12.16pm: The same girl calls 911 for the fourth time in 13 minutes asking for help
12.15pm: BORTAC (SWAT) members arrive with shields
12.16pm: The same unidentified girl calls 911 and says there are ‘8-9 students alive’ in classroom 112
12.19pm: A different child from classroom 111 calls. She hangs up when another student tells her to in order to be quiet
12.21pm: Gunman fires again
12.26pm: One of the girls who previously called 911 calls back again. She says the shooter has just ‘shot at the door’
12.43pm: The girl on that girl is still on the line. She says ‘please send the police now’
12.50pm: Police finally breach the door using keys from the janitor and kill gunman
12.51pm Officers start moving children out of the room
As Ramos walks further down the hall and out of the camera’s view, a student turns the corner from the opposite end of the hallway, near the surveillance camera and where Ramos entered.
The child, whose face was blurred due to his age, sees Ramos at the end of the hall, peering around the gunman, who is about 30 yards away at this point.
Standing in full view of Ramos, who has his back turned, the child stares quizzically at the assailant, not noticing he’s armed.
Ramos then looks around the corner of another perpendicular hallway, produces his weapon, and begins firing.
The child immediately jumps in fear upon hearing the sound of the shots, and turns back and runs in the opposite direction.
Roughly three minutes later, lawmen arrive on the scene and are seen running into the hallway that Ramos had just walked down.
By then, Ramos had barricaded himself inside connected classrooms 111 and 112, with a slew of child hostages and two teachers also locked inside.
At first, officers appear to approach the classroom the gunman was in, but then, inexplicably, they return toward the entryway of the hallway.
All the while, more than one hundred gun shots can be heard in the rest of the video, which lasts about 77 minutes.
During this time, no officer made an effort to go inside the classroom – with the exception of Uvalde County Sheriff Deputy Felix Rubio, whose now deceased ten-year-old daughter Lexi was one of those locked in with Ramos.
The deputy – who knew his daughter was inside the classroom – was restrained by other officers on the scene as he tried to enter the room, due to orders from School District Police Chief Pete Arredondo to not engage the shooter.
The footage proceeds to show officers casually conversing, fist-bumping, and using hand sanitizer as many of the 21 victims were being slaughtered.
Meanwhile, Rubio stood helpless in the school’s hallway, along with dozens of other heavily armed officers who neglected to engage the gunman at any point during the lengthy rampage.
About nine minutes after one series of shots, an officer uses hand sanitizer wall dispenser to wash his hands while waiting with the other officers.
As more gunfire rings out, two uniformed cops retreat slightly while a plain clothes officer scurries all the way to safety behind a wall, checking his clothes to see if he has been hit by volley of rounds.
One could even be seen pulling his cellphone out of his pocket, apparently to check the time.
That officer is shown to have a wallpaper showing the Marvel Universe character The Punisher.
In the wake of the nationwide Black Lives Matter protests across the country in 2020, The Punisher became a symbol for police officers nationwide as part of the Blue Lives Matter movement.
Others, the Statesman reports, sent texts and looked at floor plans as precious minutes ticked by.
A full 19 minutes after the first officers attempted to engage Ramos, the first heavy reinforcements arrive as cops with long guns, tactical gear and a ballistic shield are shown in the hallway.
However, they continue to wait in the hallway, a safe distance from Ramos.
The first ballistic shield that was used by the responding officers is rested against a wall
At one point, the video switches over to picture in picture illustrating just how many officers were there waiting to engage
After 77 minutes, Border Patrol agents could be seen storming into the classroom and are heard opening fire, but still the Uvalde police stand back
The police officer checks his phone while Salvador Ramos’ rampage is ongoing. The officer’s background image shows the pro-police symbol The Punisher
A little over half an hour after the 911 call went in, more officers, clad in combat gear, armed with long guns and ballistic shields, pile into the hallway. They do not attempt to engage Ramos.
A picture in picture appears showing a small screen with an officers body camera illustrating the amount of officers with weapons drawn in the hallway, waiting. One officer can be seen busy scrolling on his phone in the body camera footage.
The main pictures show officers in tactical gear forming a barricade of shields in preparation for an attack by Ramos.
Ramos shoots off four more rounds, 48 minutes after first arriving at the school. There is little initial reaction from the assembled members of law enforcement. The phrase: ‘Shots fired’ is repeated.
Ramos, 18, (pictured) shot and killed 19 students and two teachers while cops held back for over an hour during the Uvalde massacre on May 24
There is more inaudible conversation as officers finally begin to march down the hallway toward Ramos.
One leading the way appears to be wearing civilian clothing, including shorts and a bullet proof vest. He is armed with a rifle.
The more heavily armored officers hide behind him.
An officer in civilian clothing and bullet proof vest and helmet obtains hand sanitizer from a dispenser.
After more than half an hour, other officers could be seen entering the building with ballistic shields and rifles pointed down the hallway to the classrooms where Ramos is hiding out.
Finally, officers breach the classroom and engage Ramos, quickly killing him. A full 77 minutes after the nightmare began.
The video has sparked outrage – both on social media and from families of the 21 victims – as it provides visual confirmation of what had already been widely reported: that responding lawmen made no visible effort to save those inside the classroom.
Uvalde County’s District Attorney and the District Police have since refused to answer any questions or comment on the released video, which was obtained exclusively by the Austin American-Statesman.
It is not yet clear if the School District Police will face repercussions for the bungled response. Federal and state officials are investigating the incident.
The 19 children and two teachers butchered in Texas elementary school shooting
Amerie Jo Garza, 10
Amerie Jo Garza (right)
Amerie Jo Garza, a fourth grader at Robb Elementary, was one of 19 students confirmed to be killed Tuesday morning by Ramos, who cops say was carrying a handgun and an AR-15 during the attack that also killed two teachers in the classroom.
Her grandmother, Berlinda Irene Arreola, said the 10-year-old was killed as she tried to phone 911 while sitting next to her best friend, who ended up ‘covered in her blood.’
Arreola said Ramos told the students and staffers inside the room, ‘You’re going to die,’ before opening fire – shooting her granddaughter dead as she tried to phone for help.
‘So the gunman went in and he told the children, ‘You’re going to die,’ Berlinda told The Daily Beast.
‘And [Amerie] had her phone and she called 911. And instead of grabbing it and breaking it or taking it from her, he shot her. She was sitting right next to her best friend. Her best friend was covered in her blood.’
Uziyah Garcia
Uziyah Garcia, 8
Uziyah Garcia, the youngest victim at age eight, was also killed in the attack.
The child’s family announced he was killed hours after announcing he was among the many children unaccounted for following the tragedy.
The boy’s grandfather, Manny Renfro, broke the news early Wednesday after being notified by authorities.
‘[He was] the sweetest little boy that I’ve ever known,’ Renfro said. ‘I’m not just saying that because he was my grandkid.’
Renfro recalled how Uziyah last visited him in San Angelo over spring break.
‘We started throwing the football together and I was teaching him pass patterns.
‘Such a fast little boy and he could catch a ball so good,’ the grieving grandad said.
‘There were certain plays that I would call that he would remember and he would do it exactly like we practiced.’
Makenna Elrod, 10
Makenna Lee Elrod
Makenna Elrod, 10, had also been among the missing in the chaos that followed the massacre, with her father, Brandon Elrod telling reporters at the time he feared ‘she may not be alive.’
Her death was eventually confirmed by a family friend on Wednesday. ‘It’s pretty sad what this world’s coming to,’ the girl’s father told local outlet KTRK after the shooting.
A mother of one of Makenna’s friends lamented the loss in a post to Facebook.
‘Sweet Makenna Rest in Paradise!! My heart is shattered as my daughter Chloe loved her so much!!’ the mom wrote. A relative Wednesday confirmed that the girl had been among the victims.
Xavier Lopez, 10
Xavier Lopez
Xavier Lopez, 10, was the first student victim to be identified as one of Ramos’ victims.
The child’s mother, Felicha Martinez, told the Washington Post Tuesday that just hours before the massacre, the mom had been at the school to see her son participate an honor roll ceremony.
She took a picture showing her son showing off his certificate.
In the last exchange she had with the child, the mom heartbreakingly told the boy that she was proud of him and that she loved him, giving him a hug goodbye – not knowing it would be the last time she would see him alive.
‘He was funny, never serious and his smile… that smile I will never forget,’ she recalled after learning of his death from police. ‘It would always cheer anyone up.’
The boy’s cousin, Lisa Garza, 54, of Arlington, said Xavier enjoyed swimming and had been looking forward to the summer.
‘He was just a loving 10-year-old little boy, just enjoying life, not knowing that this tragedy was going to happen today,’ she said.
‘He was very bubbly, loved to dance with his brothers, his mom. This has just taken a toll on all of us.’
Amelia Sandoval, Lopez’s grandmother, said: ‘It’s just so hard… you send your kids to school thinking they are going to make it back home but they’re not.’
Eliahana Torres, 10
Eliahana Cruz Torres
Eliahana Cruz Torres, 10, had also been missing for hours until she was confirmed to be among the dead.
Adolfo Cruz, her great-grandfather, said she didn’t want to attend school the day of the shooting – but was told by her family that she had to attend.
He said he remained outside the school gates throughout the night until he leanrned of her fate from local authorities.
‘I hope she is alive,’ he said at the time.
Torres was an avid baseball player and played the sport in a local little league.
Ellie Lugo, 10
Ellie Lugo
Ellie Lugo was named as a victim of Tuesday’s attack by her parents, with Steven Garcia and Jennifer Lugo confirming her death several hours after she was listed among the missing.
‘It’s hard to issue out a statement on anything right now my mind is going at 1000 miles per hour… but I do wanna send our thoughts and prayers to those who also didn’t make it home tonight!!! Our Ellie was a doll and was the happiest ever,’ Steven Lugo said Wednesday.
‘Mom and Dad love you never forget that and please try and stay by our side.’
Nevaeh Bravo, 10
Nevaeh Bravo
Nevaeh Bravo was confirmed to be among the dead late Tuesday, after her cousin posted on social media following the shooting to ask for helping the girl.
Around 9 pm, she broke the news on Twitter.
‘Unfortunately my beautiful Nevaeh was one of the many victims from todays tragedy,’ she wrote.
Sje said the schoolchild was ‘flying high’ and asked for the family to be kept in people’s prayers
‘Our Nevaeh has been found. She is flying with the angels above. We love you Navaeh very much princess.’
‘Thank you for the support and help,’ she wrote. ‘Rest in peace my sweet girl, you didn’t deserve this.’
Bravo’s age could not immediately be confirmed.
Tess Marie Mata
Tess Marie Mata
Tess Marie Mata was also among those to perish in the attack, her sister, Faith Mata, revealed in a post to Facebook Wednesday.
‘I honestly have no words just sadness, confusion, and anger,’ she wrote.
‘I’m sad because we will never get to tag team on mom and dad again and tell each other how much we mean to each other, I’m confused because how can something like this happen to my sweet, caring, and beautiful sister, and I’m angry because a coward took you from us.’
Photos shared with the post showed Tess smiling in a baby photo, snuggling with a cat, doing gymnastics, flashing a peace sign, and posing in front of a large heart mural.
‘Sissy I miss you so much, I just want to hold you and tell you how pretty you are, I want to take you outside and practice softball, I want to go on one last family vacation, I want to hear your contagious laugh, and I want you to hear me tell you how much I love you,’ she wrote.
Her age could not immediately be confirmed.
Rojelio Torres, 10
Rojelio Torres
Rojelio Torres, 10, was initially reported missing by his father, but on Wednesday was confirmed dead by his family.
A person who said she was the boy’s cousin wrote on Twitter: ‘It breaks my heart to say my rojelio is now with the angels I’ll forever miss you and love you my angel.’
The child’s father , Federico Torres, told Houston reporters that he was at work when he learned about the shooting and immediately raced to the school.
‘They sent us to the hospital, to the civic center, to the hospital and here again, nothing, not even in San Antonio,’ he said. ‘They don’t tell us anything, only a photo, wait, hope that everything is well.’
Nearly half a day later, cops broke the news to the boy’s family.
‘Our entire family waited almost 12 hours since the shooting to find out Rojelio Torres, my 10-year-old nephew, was killed in this tragedy,’ Torres’ aunt, Precious Perez, told KSAT. ‘We are devastated and heartbroken. Rojer was a very intelligent, hard-working and helpful person. He will be missed and never forgotten.’
Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, 10
Jayce Luevanos
Jayce Luevanos, 10, died in the shooting along with his ten-year-old cousin, Jailah, the child’s mother said Wednesday.
In a Facebook post, uncle Unberto Gonzalez shared photos of both kids while offering a touching tribute.
‘My babies going to miss them like crazy!!!,’ Gonzalez wrote. ‘We luv y’all so much!!! I’m just lost right now!!! Fly high my beautiful Angels!!’
Jailah Nicole Silguero, 10
Jailah Nicole Silguero
Ten-year-old Jailah Nicole Silguero was also killed in the shooting, her mother, Veronica Luevanos, tearfully revealed to Univision Wednesday.
She also lost her 10-year-old nephew Jayce to the tragedy.
She said Jailah loved to dance and film videos on TikTok.
The child reportedly also asked her mom the morning of the shooting if she could stay home from school – a request the now mourning mom rebuffed.
‘I took her to school, but she didn’t want to go. She told her father, ‘Can I stay home?” Luevanos said, noting that it was not a common occurrence for her daughter to make such a request. ‘I think she knew something would happen.’
Luevanos’ mom confirmed the loss on Facebook Wednesday.
‘Fly high my angels. We’re going to miss yall so much,’ wrote Veronica Luevanos – whose dad had died just a week earlier.
‘I’m so heart broken,’ she wrote with a photo of her daughter and nephew.
‘My baby I love u so much … fly high baby girl.’
Alithia Ramirez, 10
Alithia Ramirez
Fourth grader Alithia Ramirez was confirmed dead early Wednesday by her father, Ryan Ramirez, who shared a post to Facebook showing the 10-year-old with angel’s wings. He had used the same photo the previous day as he pleaded for help finding her after the massacre
He had heartbreakingly used the same photo the previous day as he desperately pleaded for help finding her after the massacre.
‘Trying to find my daughter Alithia. I called all the hospitals and nothing,’ he wrote at the time.
He also reporters during his frantic search, ‘I’m trying to find out where my baby’s at.’
Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez, 10
Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez
Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez, 10, was another killed by Ramos Tuesday – along with her cousin, who has yet to be identified.
Annabell’s father spent the afternoon after the shooting in frantic search for his daughter.
Speaking to KHOU11 Tuesday, he lamented at how he was at a loss as to what do, having little success with the search.
‘They’re not letting us in at the hospital right now so we don’t know where to go.’
She has since been declared to be among the dead.
Miranda Mathis, 11
Miranda Mathis
Miranda Mathis, 11, was also confirmed as another casualty from the mass shooting early Wednesday, in a Facebook post by an older cousin who earlier that day had posted a desperate plea for help in locating the child.
‘My sweet baby cousin we loved u dearly,’ Deanna Miller wrote alongside a photo of the child with angel wings.
‘I’m so sorry this happen to u baby please keep my family in your prayers,’ she grieved.
Miller’s kids had also been at the school at the time of the shooting, but survived the attack.
One of her sons told her that they were ushered out of a window by staffers during the attack and subsequently ran to a nearby funeral home after ‘he heard the shooter say he was gonna kill all the kids.’
Alexandria ‘Lexi’ Aniyah Rubio, 10
Alexandria Aniyah Rubio
Alexandria Aniyah Rubio – who was better known to friends as ‘Lexi’ – was confirmed dead just before midnight on Tuesday.
The ten-year-old was shot dead just hours after posing for a photo with her parents at the school’s honor roll ceremony.
Kimberly Mata-Rubio, the girl’s mother, wrote of the loss: ‘My beautiful, smart, Alexandria Aniyah Rubio was recognized today for All-A honor roll. She also received the good citizen award. We told her we loved her and would pick her up after school. We had no idea this was goodbye.’
Maite Yuleana
Maite Yuleana
Maite Yuleana was another student to die in the attack that had attended the honor roll ceremony just hours before.
A cousin of the girl’s mother, Ana Rodriguez, announced the loss Wednesday.
‘It is with a heavy heart I come on here on behalf of my cousin Ana who lost her sweet baby girl in yesterday’s senseless shooting.
‘We are deeply saddened by the lose [sic] of this sweet smart little girl…. God bless and may she R.I.P Maite Rodriguez we love you.’
Another relative shared a photo of Maite with her honor roll certificate.
Her age could not immediately be confirmed.
Jose Flores Jr, 10
Jose Flores
Jose Flores, 10, was also killed in the shooting after attending the honor roll ceremony, where he was pictured triumphantly clutching a certificate celebrating the accomplishment.
Uncle Christopher Salazar confirmed to the Washington Post Wednesday that his 10-year-old nephew was among the dead, after sharing a tribute to the child on Facebook.
‘I love you and I miss you,’ Salazar wrote in the post.
The boy’s father described Jose to CNN as an amazing boy and big brother to his two younger siblings.
‘He was always fill of energy,’ Jose Flores Sr. said. ‘Ready to play till the night.’
He said the boy loved playing baseball and video games.
Jackie Cazares
Jackie Cazares, 10
Jackie Cazares, 10, was another to be killed during the vicious attack at the elementary school.
Her father Jacinto confirmed she lost her life inside her fourth-grade classroom.
‘My baby girl has been taken away from my family and I,’ the grieving father said in an online post.
‘We’re devastated in ways I hope no one ever goes through. … It hurts us to our souls.’
Cazares said his daughter, who was with her cousin, Annabell Rodriguez, when she died, was ‘full of life and love’.
Layla Salazar, 10
The 10-year-old student was the last of the slaying victims to be identified.
Vincent Salazar told the Philadelphia Inquirer his young daughter was among those killed.
He said she was ‘a lot of fun’ and recalled how they sang along to ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’ by Guns ‘n’ Roses whenever he drove her to school.
Layla Salazar
Irma Garcia, 46 – fourth grade teacher
Irma Garcia
Irma Garcia, who co-taught with Mireles for the last five year, had been at Robb Elementary for 23 years.
Married to Joe for 24 years, she was a mother of four – Cristian, completing Marine boot camp; Jose, attending Texas State university University; Lyliana, a sophomore in high school; and Alysandra, a 7th grader.
‘My tia did not make it, she sacrificed herself protecting the kids in her classroom, i beg of you to keep my family including all of her family in y’all’s prayers , IRMA GARCIA IS HER NAME and she died a HERO,’ tweeted her nephew John.
‘She was loved by many and will truly be missed.’
She was nominated as teacher of the year for the 2018-19 awards, organized by Trinity University.
Eva Mireles, 44 – fourth grade teacher
Eva Mireles
Eva Mireles, a fourth grade teacher, was identified by her family as being one of the staff members shot dead. She had worked in education for 17 years.
Her husband Ruben Ruiz, a veteran detective and SWAT team member currently serving as a police officer with the school district, held regular active shooter drills for the schools – most recently at the end of March.
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