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Body cam shows chaos at UF vigil stampede
FOX 35 News has obtained body camera footage from the night a stampede at the University of Florida injured dozens of people. That happened at a rally for Israel right after Hamas bombed the country.
GAINESVILLE - FOX 35 News has obtained body camera footage from the night a stampede at the University of Florida injured dozens of people.
That happened at a rally for Israel right after Hamas bombed the country.
The new video gives us a better understanding of the chaos that unfolded at UF.
It wasn’t just students who were confused; it was officers and deputies too.
The body cam shows students suddenly scattering away from Turlington Plaza. Police officers with the University of Florida flood toward the area the crowd had fled.
"Everyone down, get out of the way!" officers shout as they run. "Watch out, move!"
Students ask the officers what happened.
"We don’t know," one officer is heard answering on the body camera video.
Eventually, the officers piece things together.
"I think someone passed out and people started saying, ‘call 911’ and then everyone just – I think that’s what happened," one witness says in the video.
"There were two pop sounds from over here, and then people near the podium started saying ‘gunfire,’" another witness added.
Even after UFPD realized what caused the stampede, they had other things on their mind.
"A GPD officer just told me there were shots fired at [the] Architecture [building]," one UFPD officer tells another.
Plus, the video reveals a threat that UFPD says they hadn’t been warned about before they formed the security plan for the event.
"GPD was actually looking into a report of someone who said they were going to kill Jews tonight and bring a suicide vest," a UFPD officer discusses with deputies from the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office.
The bomb threat and shooting rumor didn't amount to anything.
In total, UF says there were between 800 and 1,000 people in Turlington Plaza when the stampede broke out. At least 25 were treated for minor injuries.