John Asbury, Staff Writer, jasbury@pe.com, The Press Enterprise  

San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies have released the audio of dispatch calls during the Feb. 12 manhunt for fugitive and ex-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner.

The chilling callout from dispatchers of “officer down” revives that fateful day when two San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies were shot by the persistent popping of automatic gunfire through smoke as they approached a cabin where Dorner was holed up.

“Shots fired, Seven Oaks Cabin. Returning fire,” officers called out. “We need an airship, officer down, officer down! Medic ship is in the air.”

Seconds later, a second call came out, “Another officer down.”

The 13 hours of audio files accompany written transcripts of the dispatch records released earlier this month. They are the same dispatches that played out over the police scanner the day Dorner was discovered hiding in a Big Bear cabin.

The audio records were released by the Sheriff’s Department on Monday afternoon; sheriff’s officials said they redacted any tactical moves that could jeopardize future operations.

The Feb. 12 standoff near Angelus Oaks culminated at the end of a 10-day search for Dorner, who killed an Irvine couple and released a manifesto targeting enemies in a vendetta after he was fired by the Los Angeles Police Department.

On Feb. 7, he came to Corona, where he engaged in a gun battle with LAPD officers off Interstate 15.

RIVERSIDE AMBUSH

Minutes later, he drove through Riverside, where he ambushed Riverside Police Officers Michael Crain and Andrew Tachias as they were stopped at a red light. Crain died at the scene and Tachias was severely injured.

Officers next picked up Dorner’s trail that day, when they found his truck in the Big Bear Mountains abandoned with a broken axle and set ablaze.

Authorities on Feb. 12 received a 911 call that Dorner tied up a couple in their Big Bear Mountains cabin and stole their purple Nissan SUV.

When sheriff’s deputies arrived at the cabin, they were worried Dorner might still be inside or may have taken the residents hostage.

“We’re calling out to victims. Possibility of an ambush, take cover and keep calling out to her,” one deputy said. “The reporting party is advising she’s still tied up.”

Dorner had left the cabin alone.

Authorities scrambled to close off all mountain highways as they scoured Highway 38 for Dorner’s vehicle.

“CHP notified to cover all exits on the mountain,” according to the radio dispatch. “Do your best to lockdown the mountain. … Stop everything moving. Shut down 38 completely in case he gets another vehicle.”

During the search, Dorner eluded California Fish and Wildlife officers, crashed the SUV and carjacked a Boy Scout ranger.

He then passed California Fish and Wildlife officers and got into a shootout.

S.B. COUNTY DEPUTIES

Sheriff’s deputies and other police agencies cornered Dorner in a cabin off Glass Road in the Seven Oaks area, where he shot and killed Sheriff’s Deputy Jeremiah MacKay. He also shot Deputy Alex Collins, who had to be airlifted from the firefight.

Authorities still had no sight of Dorner after the first deputy was shot. They relayed to a helicopter pilot to help spot Dorner seconds before he shot the other deputy on the ground.

“Any update on our deputies down?” a dispatcher asked, followed by silence. “The deputies are still down in the kill zone.”

Authorities went in under the cover of smoke bombs as the two deputies were loaded into the back of a pickup and taken to a waiting helicopter.

Authorities surrounded the cabin for two hours as they ensured he had not escaped out of the back of the cabin.

The standoff ended when sheriff’s deputies fired pyrotechnic tear gas, setting the cabin ablaze. Dorner died from a single self-inflicted gunshot to the head, officials said.   

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