Students on the Chapel Hill campus of the University of North Carolina endured a scary few hours on Monday locked down in residence halls and classrooms as law enforcement officers searched for a shooter.
An emergency notification from Alert Carolina was sent just after 1 p.m. and sirens went off around campus.
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UNC students, faculty and staff had just started the fall semester classes last week, and a routine Monday ended when police descended on campus, turning a normally bustling Franklin Street quiet. UNC was placed on lockdown as word spread that an armed person was on campus. Some students were even seen jumping from a second-floor window in attempt to get to a safer place.
Photos of students in dark classrooms and library study areas were shared with friends, and students updated family members on their status through their smart phones.
Several students exchanged messages with WRAL News about their experience while staying sheltered in place.
"For the past 30 minutes we've been in a room under shelter," said one student. "It's a very stressful time, and we're trying to stay together and just stay calm."
For Chapel Hill-Carrboro students, many were spent locked inside while police searched for the shooter. For parents, they tried their best to stay positive so their children could continue being excited about school.
"I just gave them a hug and asked how their day went," Deidre McEntyre said. "Because we don't know what they were informed of, and make them fearful of coming to school."
Parents like McEntyre were forced to wait for hours while authorities looked for the suspected shooter. While she's relieved her children were safe, she said the conversation about the harsh reality will be at the dinner table.
"Unfortunately, it's just something we have to think of every single school year," McEntyre said. "We'll talk about it at the dinner table and see how they feel, and also ensure them they were safe and in good hands."
In calls to 911, witnesses described seeing a man with a 9mm weapon.
In radio traffic from Broadcastify.com, dispatchers could be heard directing officers to find the victim.
"The gun shot victim is going to be in Room 159. Only one victim at this time," the dispatcher says. "Campus is requesting EMS to proceed to Room 159. It is safe at this time."
"You never think this is going to happen to you, no matter how much we see it in our world," another student said.
Campus police first released a photo of a man they called a "person of interest," and just before 3 p.m. arrested Tailei Qi.
After the chaos was over, UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz praised students and staff.
"I want to commend those who were in the building ensuring they were doing everything possible to ensure safety of the students and staff and faculty in the building," he said.
Qi's profile on the university applied physical sciences website showed he had been at UNC since 2022. Qi graduated from Louisiana State with a master's degree in Mechanical Engineering in 2021. He also attended Wuhan University.
"I think we all have to just take care of each other and I hope that the university will support us too," said senior Talyah Rawls.
Around 4:30 p.m., the lockdown was lifted and streams of students were seen leaving their classrooms. All remaining classes and UNC-sanctioned events were canceled for the rest of the day. Classes were also canceled on Wednesday.
Around 5 p.m., WRAL News learned that one person, a faculty member, died in the shooting.
Carter Scott, a UNC grad student and former classmate of Qi's, spoke with WRAL News.
"I would have never guessed that he would be the kind of person who could possibly be capable of this kind of thing," Scott said. "He was always very quiet."
"Every single time he would talk to me, he seemed very nice. When I saw his face in the reports online, I was beyond shocked."
UNC-Chapel Hill said they will open a hotline Tuesday at 8 a.m. for concerned parents, loved ones and community members who have questions regarding the shooting.
The number is 919-918-1999