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The brave WPC first on the scene at the Woolwich beheading came within inches of death, as this exclusive Daily Mirror footage shows.

The driver, unable to draw her firearm, is saved by a male colleague in the back who fires his machine-gun through his window at a suspect who is charging at her.

The callous Islamic extremists had lured police to the scene by dragging the body of the murdered fusilier – named yesterday as Lee Rigby, 25 – into the middle of the road.

When they see the first police car arrive, the pair split up.

Blade-wielding Michael Adebolajo, 28, runs at officers head-on and his accomplice, named locally as 22-year-old Michael Oluwatobi Adebowale, advances alongside, aiming his gun at them.

The film of the 10 seconds of terror shows how Adebolajo got within two feet of the WPC who was driving the armed response BMW X5.

As he is sent sprawling to the ground by the force of the two shots, two officers jump out to cover him.

They appear not to see Adebowale aiming a handgun at them.

But a third SO19 marksman from the specialist Trojan unit spots him and he is brought to the ground as six more shots ring out in the suburban South East London street.

After seeing the Mirror’s exclusive video, Former Det Ch Insp Peter Kirkham, an expert in firearms tactics, said last night: “I have never seen anything like this before, or even heard of it happening.

"For two suspects to carry out a brutal attack like this then stand around in plain sight waiting for the police is crazy.”

The dramatic climax to the horrific attack – in which dad of one Lee, from Manchester, was hacked to death – was filmed by a resident in a tower block overlooking the scene in ­Artillery Road, Woolwich.

The footage reveals how, after beheading the soldier, they set up their ambush bid to murder the first police officers to arrive.

For eight minutes before that, the suspects are seen talking to passers-by and three women who try to help the victim.

But as soon they see the patrol car turn the corner the suspects spring into action, in a move designed to give the gunman time to target officers.

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The 15-minute 50-second footage was filmed 100ft up from the windows of a flat as calls flooded in to police at 2.20pm on Wednesday.

Scotland Yard assigned an armed response unit four minutes later. And it arrived 10 minutes after that.

At one point an ambulance drives towards Lee’s body and swerves round him when the two armed suspects are seen standing nearby.

Eight minutes 21 seconds into the video, the men sprint towards the police BMW X5 which comes round the corner and skids to a halt.

Adebolajo, in a charcoal hooded top and black woolly hat, charges head-long towards the driver’s side of the marked silver patrol car, in an apparent attempt to attack officers.

He drops one of his blades and moves the other into his right hand as he rushes wildly at the vehicle.

(Image: Twitter/@dannymckiernan)

Just as he is within touching distance, two shots ring out and he is sent sprawling.

The officers took a split-second decision to open fire with hollow point bullets while they were sitting in the car, either through open windows or partially opened doors.

Adebowale immediately takes off with a handgun, running past the three officers as they emerge from the car.

In his light-coloured trench coat he can be seen pointing the revolver at the officers as they tackle Adebolajo.

As he disappears briefly behind a tree four more shots ring out, including one from him according to some witnesses, and he stumbles and falls near a road sign.

As the cops advance on the blade maniac, the female driver can be seen carrying a bright yellow Taser.

She is flanked by two male colleagues who run out from either side of the car, with Heckler and Koch MP5 submachine guns.

The female officer drops her Taser and pulls out a handgun and covers the knifeman as he lays prone.

The man who filmed the footage said: “I got my camera phone out and started filming as I thought it was a robbery or a kidnapping.”