Statement on Pepperhill Incident from Charleston County Council Chairman Teddie Pryor

The following is a statement from Charleston County Council Chairman Teddie Pryor on the shooting incident at the Pepperhill baseball fields:

“On Monday, April 25th, the Charleston County Consolidated 9-1-1 Center received 17 calls in a five-minute period regarding the shots fired near the Pepperhill baseball fields. No parent or child should ever have to witness this terrifying act of senseless violence that I know caused a lot of fear and confusion that evening.

We always encourage residents to call 9-1-1 in an emergency that requires immediate assistance from police, fire, or medical services. We are extremely thankful that everyone during this senseless act of violence was able to call 9-1-1 for immediate assistance. Most importantly, we are also thankful for the dedicated men and women in Charleston County Consolidated 9-1-1 Dispatch Center who remained calm while assisting residents and dispatching law enforcement to the scene.

A North Charleston Police officer, who was in the neighborhood, heard shots and notified dispatch of this incident. The first 9-1-1 call that came into the dispatch center was answered within two seconds and the location was provided.

In the event of a major incident like what happened Monday night, the 9-1-1 Center gets flooded with calls and it is extremely important that callers follow the directions of the automated recording they may hear when dialing 9-1-1 when the dispatch center becomes inundated with calls. The recording instructs the caller not to hang up the phone. As soon as a call-taker is available, he or she will answer the call. When a person hangs up on 9-1-1, the call taker must call the person back, which ties that person up from answering another call. There were eight 9-1-1 hang-ups Monday evening.

Again, I want to thank our 9-1-1 call takers and dispatchers for their dedication and service to our community and assure our community that Charleston County Consolidated 9-1-1 is here to assist in the event of an emergency.”

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