Deputies called to mall after shooting report

Holbrook said two men fired guns in the air just after 7 p.m. Saturday in front of a jewelry store at the Columbiana Centre mall.

Officers from multiple jurisdictions were responding, WIS reported, and Columbia police said officers are evacuating areas inside the mall, talking to possible witnesses and gathering information.

Police Chief William “Skip” Holbrook said the incident began inside the mall with a fistfight involving three men.

Officers have not found any of the three people they think are involved, according to Holbrook, who said officers have checked all local hospitals and not found anyone who had been shot.

The Newberry County Sheriff’s Department says tthis is a developing situation and that people should stay away from the area.

“They were all running and leaving stuff behind, like there were snakes behind them”, said Stacey Haltiwanger, owner of the Sassy and Classy boutique in the mall.

One person inside of the mall shared video on Instagram showing officers and K-9 searching the mall.

Columbiana Centre has several anchor stores, a food court and dozens of retail shops.

The reports of gunfire came soon after the polls closed in South Carolina’s Republican presidential primary, but there was no known connection between the voting and events at the mall. Authorities set up a place in a Toys R Us parking lot next door for people who got separated to reunite.