ST. HELENA ISLAND, S.C. (AP) — A mass shooting at a crowded bar on an idyllic island considered to be the largest Gullah community on the South Carolina coast has left four people dead and at least 20 injured, officials said Sunday.

A large crowd was at Willie's Bar and Grill on St. Helena Island when sheriff's deputies arrived and found several people with gunshot wounds early Sunday.

“Screaming and panic and fear,” bar owner Willie Turral said, describing the shooting. He was inside when he heard shots fired outside the bar. “These things went off in bursts.”

The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on the social platform X that many people ran to nearby businesses seeking shelter from the gunfire.

“This is a tragic and difficult incident for everyone," the statement

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