Washington : A total of 12 people were injured as a result of the shooting that occurred at a mall in the city of Columbia, in the US state of South Carolina, according to the Columbia Police Department.
Police Chief William “Skip” Holbrook told reporters during a Saturday briefing, broadcast on social media, that no one was killed in the shooting, but a total of ten people were hit by gunfire, while two others were injured during the “stampede” following the incident.
The victims’ ages range between 15 and 75; two of the injured are in critical condition, according to Holbrook.
Heavy police presence continued in the area hours after the shooting, though officers began letting more traffic through the streets surrounding the shopping centers and strip malls that are usually packed on weekends. Officers were also stationed outside a nearby hotel designated as a reunification area for people at the scene of the shooting and their families.
Workers from a couple of stores remained clustered in the mostly empty parking lot Saturday evening, waiting for police to let them back inside to retrieve their car keys and personal belongings so they could leave. They said they did not hear or see anything during the shooting but followed the mall’s alert system and were evacuated by police shortly after. They declined to give their names, citing company policies.
