ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Police: 6 people wounded in shooting on South Carolina beach

Share
ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. -

Gunfire erupted on a South Carolina beach during a "senior skip day" event involving numerous teenagers Friday, wounding six people and prompting charges against two for unlawful possession of guns, police in South Carolina said.

The shots broke out around 5:20 p.m. on Isle of Palms, 94 miles (151 kilometers) south of Myrtle Beach. Police are still investigating the shooting, and are asking for the public to provide additional information or video footage.

Isle of Palms Police Chief Kevin Cornett said during a news conference Saturday that police arrested and charged a 16-year-old with possessing a stolen firearm and unlawfully carrying it. Cornett said police are still investigating whether the juvenile was involved in the shooting. Additionally, an 18-year-old was arrested on a charge of unlawful possession of a firearm in a municipal parking lot, the police chief said.

Hundreds of people including high schoolers taking an unofficial day off were on the beach at the time, and there were several altercations before shots were fired, Cornett has said. Officers went out on the beach when they saw the crowd gathering, then two fights broke out and the shooting unfolded, Cornett said.

Cornett said two guns -- pistols from the two people who were arrested -- have been confiscated so far. He said the number of shooters remains under investigation.

Six people suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. Some were taken to the hospital by ambulance and others transported themselves, and most of them have already been released. Five of the victims were teens, and another was in her mid-30s, Cornett said.

The person in her 30s was just in the area using the beach, "an innocent victim in a bad spot," Cornett said. The others who were injured were part of the group on the beach, but Cornett said it remains unclear whether they were involved in any wrongdoing or just innocent victims.

Police could not immediately say if the shooter or shooters were in custody or if any of the firearms recovered at the scene were used in the shooting, Cornett has said.

Charleston County Sheriff Kristin Graziano said most of the people her office spoke with on Friday did not cooperate. She implored families, school officials and others to reach out if they know who participated.

"There's absolutely no reason that anybody should be carrying a gun to the beach," Graziano said at the Saturday news conference. "Absolutely no reason. And you have innocent bystanders that were victims of that."

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

Advocates have identified the woman who died this week after being shot by police in Surrey, B.C., as a South American refugee who was raising a young daughter.

Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.

A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.

The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

Provincial police investigating the death of a cat that was allegedly set on fire in Orillia earlier this week released surveillance video of a person of interest in the case.

Local Spotlight

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.