A charter boat “altercation” erupted into gunfire Sunday in South Carolina, wounding at least 10 people and leaving another person with injuries, authorities said.
Horry County police said in a statement Monday that investigators were still working “to identify the person or persons responsible for the incident” in Little River, a beach town about 25 miles northeast of Myrtle Beach.
“Thus far, the investigation indicates that the shooting was an isolated event that resulted from an altercation during a private Memorial Day weekend gathering on a charter boat,” police said. “The boat was docked at the time of the incident.”
The most seriously wounded people were listed in “critical but stable condition,” police said.
Passengers had just docked when shooting erupted on the marina, said Harold Wiegel, a partner of nearby business Myrtle Beach Adventures.
“When they got off the boat, they just started shooting each other,” Wiegel told NBC News.
Wiegel, whose son lives near the marina and heard the shooting, identified the boat as the Hurricane, operated by Little River Fishing Fleet.
Horry County police identified the boat Monday afternoon as Hurricane II and said investigators were still working to find “the ownership of or company coordinating the charter.”
A person who answered the phone at Little River Fishing Fleet on Monday confirmed that charter customers aboard the Hurricane were involved in the incident Sunday but declined to provide further details.
The Associated Press reported that an online flyer advertised a party Sunday on a three-hour cruise with a DJ.
A North Myrtle Beach police officer was injured when his gun accidentally fired, Myrtle Beach police said in a separate statement.
The officer, who was wounded in a leg, was stabilized at a hospital, the police department said.
The shooting, sometime before 10 p.m., was isolated to its original location near the Intracoastal Waterway, police said.
“There is no risk to the community at this time,” they said.
Little River is a community of more than 11,000 people along the South Carolina coast’s Grand Strand and near the border with North Carolina. The town is known for its deep-sea fishing charters, boat cruises and casino boats.
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