Four people were killed and at least 20 others injured Sunday in a shooting at a restaurant in a South Carolina island town, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office said.
Officers were called to Willie’s Bar and Grill on St. Helena Island just before 1 a.m. and found several people suffering from gunshot wounds, the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
Among the injured, four are in critical condition, authorities said.
Learn more: A young person killed in crossfire on M9
The sheriff’s office said it was investigating the incident but declined to provide further details. The office declined to release the names of those killed pending notification of their family members.
Hundreds of people were present at the time of the shooting, the sheriff’s office said.
The United States announced today that several victims were transported to nearby hospitals after the shooting on the South Carolina island, including at least four in critical condition. The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office called the incident “tragic and difficult,” urging patience as investigations continue. Officials said they were pursuing persons of interest but declined to release further details.
“This is a tragic and difficult incident for everyone,” the sheriff’s office said.
The island of St. Helena is known as the epicenter of a culture of descendants of African slaves known as the Gullah Geechee. The bar and grill where the shooting took place describes itself as serving authentic Gullah cuisine.
Read also: Polio worker shot dead in Karachi, Sindh CM takes note of incident
Mass shootings, which the Gun Violence Archive defines as incidents in which four or more people are shot, have become more common over the past decade.
Americans are largely divided along political lines regarding possible policy solutions, with Democrats favoring more gun restrictions and Republicans supporting gun rights and better enforcement of laws against violent crime.
