Tapes released from 911 call in Matthews crash

It’s been one week since Officer Richard Matthews of the WPD was killed in a car crash.

He was responding as back up for another officer when he crashed his car. The Wilmington Police Department just released the audio recordings of radio calls between officers on the scene and 911 dispatchers.

The recordings start with the initial traffic stop to which Officer Matthews was responding as back up early last Wednesday morning.

As the recordings progress, you can hear officers ask for help after Matthews crashed.

“318: I need EMS for Officer Matthews. He’s got a 1050 on Shipyard Boulevard right across from Pine Valley Baptist Church, he’s in the tree please.”

“I need EMS and fire and as fast as you can get them. 10-4 they’re both in route, 1018.”

“There is a 1050 officer involved, officer is ejected from the vehicle at this time.”

The Wilmington Police Department hadn’t planned to release the audio recordings this soon, considering many of the officers are still quite emotional, however some legal pressure from another media outlet prompted the police department to release the recordings late this afternoon.