WASHNGTON:At least two people were killed and eight others injured during a shooting at a nightclub in the US state of South Carolina, police said.
The shooting took place just before 2 a.m. on Sunday in the city of Greenville when Greenville County Sheriff's deputies noticed a disturbance at the club, Lavish Lounge, and called for backup due to active gunfire from inside the building, Xinhua news agency agency reported.
The nightclub was hosting a "very, very, very, large crowd" for a concert when the shooting erupted, Sheriff Hobart Lewis said in an interview with the CNN affiliate WYFF.
The club promoted a performance by Greensboro, Georgia, rapper Foogiano beginning at 9 p.m. Saturday night, but it was not clear if other acts also played, according to a CNN report.
That was a direct violation of Governor Henry McMaster's executive order restricting nightclubs and any type of concert due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The eight injured people are in "various conditions", Lewis added.
The authorities are looking for at least two suspects, and possibly more, in the shooting, according to an ABC News report.
The Sheriff's Office said no one is currently in custody and police are actively investigating the shooting.
Later Sunday, the nightclub posted a message to its social media accounts: "Due to the outcome of (tonight's) event all future events have been postponed until further notice. We will update you as time progresses."
South Carolina accounted for more than 41, 000 coronavirus cases as of Friday, according to Johns Hopkins University.
In its last update Saturday, the state Department of Health and Environmental Control reported 1, 836 new cases, with Greenville County showing the third-highest spike at 199 cases.