Mass shooting in Myrtle Beach tourist hotspot leaves 11 injured, suspect killed by police

At least 11 people have been injured and one suspect has been killed in an officer-involved shooting in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

The Myrtle Beach Police Department revealed on Facebook that officers responded to an incident at roughly 11:50 p.m. on Saturday.

Officers “observed a disturbance involving multiple individuals” on North Ocean Boulevard, the statement said. One person began firing their weapon during the “altercation,” prompting an officer to respond by discharging their firearm. The officer wasn’t injured.

“In accordance with established protocol, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) will conduct an independent investigation,” the Myrtle Beach Police said on Facebook. “Simultaneously, the Myrtle Beach Police Department will carry out an internal review of the incident.”

“Our officer saw what happened, and when he saw that an altercation was taking place and a gun was being shot, the officer responded very quickly and in my opinion, saved lives,” Mayor Brenda Bethune told News13. “Last night could have been so much worse.”

The mayor said the eventual SLED report into the incident will be publicly released.

“Unfortunately, with social media, there’s going to be a lot of comments being said that are not true, and [people] trying to make more out of this, and we want to get the facts out so that people know what has happened,” she said.

The incident occurred in the city’s entertainment district at the start of the tourism season.

Washington D.C. visitor Sebastian McMillon told News13 that he would still come to Myrtle Beach in the future.

“There’s trouble all over the world, we can’t control that. So we just have to come and not let fear spoil our vacation. We still come here to enjoy the sights, enjoy the views, so I don’t feel threatened at all,” he told the local station. “I’ve been coming here for years. I’ll still come.”

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