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‘I’ll take a bullet before you do’

A video taken inside the California social services building where at least 14 people were killed Wednesday shows an officer trying to calm a terrified group of people. Another whispers “Oh God”.

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He acknowledged that most officers would be on overtime, which could further stress the bottom line for the financially struggling city, but said that safety was his top concern. “I’ll take a bullet before you do”.

Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said that following the late-morning massacre, the pair fled in a dark-colored SUV but were shortly tracked down by police, who riddled the vehicle with bullets.

Flores, a customer services coordinator, gave KPCC permission to post the video on its site.

“Try to relax, everyone, try to relax”, the officer tells employees shaken by the mass shooting.

“A second noted: “#SanBernardino: “What an incredible police officer!!” “Keep your hands where I can see them”.

While they wait one woman asks her colleague if he knew who the shooter was.

When convinced the way was clear, the officer starts to lead the crowd to freedom and safety.

After the video was posted to Facebook, the police officer’s quiet leadership drew praise.

“Try to relax. Try to relax. That’s for damn sure, OK”. “True bravery in crisis”, wrote Caleb Nelson.

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It was chaos inside, Madden said, with fire alarms and sprinklers going off, and people “obviously injured and in great amounts of pain, that was evident in the moans and wails we were hearing in the room”. Unfortunately if it’s not about police “brutality” it just doesn’t make the cut.

I'll take a bullet before you do: Video from inside Calif. massacre