COLUMBIA, S.C. — Ten people were shot, and two people were injured in a stampede after shots were fired at about 2 p.m. near the Gap store at Columbiana Centre mall in Columbia Saturday afternoon. No deaths have been reported.
Police said at least three people were seen with guns inside the mall, and at least one person fired a gun. Three people had been detained as of about 5 p.m. Saturday.
There were more than a hundred first responders at the mall and across the street at a command center. This includes law enforcement officers in uniform and others in fatigues and body armor with what appears to be automatic rifles.
The mall parking lot was closed as emergency vehicles swarmed the mall area, and exit ramps to Harbison Boulevard from Interstate 26 were shut down.
A reunification site for loved ones was staged at the Fairfield Inn at 320 Columbiana Drive, according to the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department. The scene outside the hotel was quiet, as an ambulance and fire department vehicle were seen idling in the parking lot.
Law enforcement officers carrying long guns and wearing camouflage vests were seen walking into Dave & Busters at the mall around 3:20 p.m.
People at the mall describe scene
Speaking to a reporter shortly before 3:30 p.m., J. Canty, a security guard at the mall, said it was still an active situation and law enforcement officials were trying to clear the mall out. There was a belief a shooter, or shooters, were still inside the mall, which was surrounded by dozens of patrol vehicles from Columbia and Irmo police as well as Lexington County Sheriff’s deputies.
A group of mall employees were grouped together in an area inside the mall near Belk. They said they were not allowed to comment or talk to the media by their corporate supervisors, but said they are just trying to stay safe.
This lockdown could last for hours, Canty said.
As of 5 p.m., Chief Holbrook said officers were continuing to canvas the mall store by store, though it appeared that most people had been evacuated from the mall.
Cindy Paris Rectenwald and her daughter Rachel were in the food court when the shooter began to fire. They said it sounded like a rapid series of pops. They thought it was rain hitting the glass roof. They saw people running toward them. The shots sounded like they came from an area just beyond the food court and toward some stores.
People were “screaming and yelling” as they ran for the exit doors in the food court, Rectenwald said. She and her daughter jumped up and fled with the crowd. The firing had stopped. Rectenwald got under a table for a moment.
Rachel lost her mom for a moment but beckoned her to “come on” when she saw her under the table. They made it outside and into their car. They said the gun sounded like an automatic weapon. The shots were extremely quick and there wasn’t a sound of reloading.
As they started to drive away, police, ambulances and fire crews speed by them toward the mall, they said.
Justin Smith was just pulling up to the mall not long after 2 p.m. with his young daughter in the car. As they circled toward the back side of the mall, they started seeing people running and into the parking lots near a department store. He asked someone what was going on.
The person said, “Please don’t go in there.” He was told a shooting happened near the food court.
It took them 20 minutes to get out of the area of the mall, Smith said.
Casey Poole, 25, of Columbia, said he was with two of his friends inside the Buckle store where he was making a purchase. He and the cashier heard a sound for five to 10 seconds and thought it was raining.
“That’s when I saw everyone running for the (mall) exit,” Poole said.
Buckle employees inside acted quickly and locked their store doors to keep customers from going back into the mall.
“They (the employees) reacted very well and under control and locked it up really quick,” Poole said.
About 10 minutes later, Poole left the store through the emergency exit in the back of the store, which led to the parking lot and saw one or two people taken away on stretchers.
State Rep. Chip Huggins, a Republican from the Irmo area, said it’s hard to believe the incident occurred at the popular mall. Huggins said he noticed the commotion as he was driving into Columbia for the retirement ceremony of a Marine that was being held at the State House. He received a text that the incident had occurred.
“My goodness, where can we go that’s safe anymore?’‘ Huggins asked. “These kinds of things antagonize and scare people to death. ...
“Normally, when I come by Columbiana, I see families getting out of their cars. Today, I’ve never seen so many law enforcement and first responders in my lifetime.’‘
Asked if anything can be done to stop such incidents, Huggins said it is difficult.
“You can’t pass legislation to solve everything,’‘ he said. “There has to be some degree of folks living within the law.’‘
