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https://www.thestate.com/news/local/crime/article260482507.html

Columbia SC mall shooting: Injuries, but police say no fatalities reported as mall evacuated

thestate.com/news/local/crime/article260482507.html

By David Travis Bland

Duration 0:18

Raw video from Harbison Boulevard after shooting, mall evacuation

Shots were fired at Columbiana Centre mall on Harbison Boulevard, the Columbia Police Department reported at about 2:30 p.m. Saturday. People have been injured in the shooting, and officers were evacuating the mall. By Morgan Hughes

Shots were fired at Columbiana Centre mall on Harbison Boulevard Saturday, the Columbia Police Department reported at about 2:30 p.m.

People have been injured in the shooting, and officers were evacuating the mall, the department said. The injured people are getting medical attention.

Columbia Police Deputy Chief Melron Kelly said multiple people have been shot, but there are no fatalities reported. Eight people have been taken for medical treatment, but it’s not certain how many of those people were shot. Some might have been trampled after shots were fired, Kelly said.

No arrests have been made, and officers are “going store to store and closet to closet searching for someone with a weapon,” Kelly said.

The search is part of the process of clearing the mall of all shoppers.

There are 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. At least one ambulance was seen leaving the mall shortly after 3 p.m.

A reunification site for loved ones was being staged at the Fairfield Inn at 320 Columbiana Drive, according to the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.

Law enforcement officers carrying long guns and wearing camouflage vests were seen walking into Dave & Busters at the mall around 3:20 p.m.

J. Canty, a security guard at the mall said it is still an active situation and law enforcement officials are trying to clear the mall out. There is the belief a shooter, or shooters, are still inside the mall, that is surrounded by dozens of patrol vehicles from Columbia and Irmo police as well as Lexington County Sheriff’s deputies.

Canty confirmed there were injuries and an ambulance with its lights on was seen driving out of the mall parking lot.

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.

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.

Columbia Police Department will be the official police source for information. Columbiana Centre is within the city limits of Columbia and is patrolled by the Columbia Police Department.

Social media posts by people claiming to be at the mall have said shots were fired.

If you were at the mall at the time of the shooting, please email reporter Joe Bustos at jbustos@thestate.com to share what you saw.

This is breaking news that will be updated. Check back.

This story was originally published April 16, 2022 2:35 PM.