A 911 dispatcher has been placed on leave and may lose her job after allegedly hanging up on a supermarket employee hiding during this weekend’s shooting rampage in Buffalo, New York.
The Office of the Erie County Executive told NBC News the dispatcher who took the call is on adminsitrative leave pending a disciplinary hearing slated for the week of May 30 where "termination will be sought."
An internal investigation began on Sunday, one day after the shooting, and the staffer was placed on leave the following day.
The dispatcher was employed by the county for eight years, office spokesperson Peter Anderson said.
An assistant office manager at Tops Friendly Market, where 10 Black people were killed by a white gunman Saturday, told The Buffalo News that she was whispering during the 911 call because she feared the shooter would hear her.
The store employee alleges the dispatcher shouted at her, asked why she was whispering — then hung up. The employee said she had to call her boyfriend and tell him to dial 911 and report the shooting.
Anderson told Associated Press it’s unclear who hung up on whom.
A message was left with the union that represents Buffalo’s 911 dispatchers.