Shooting at the beach in South Carolina, U.S.

Washington, April 8 (RHC)-- At least six people, some of them teenagers, were wounded after a shooting at a beach in the U.S. state of South Carolina, according to local media reports.

The scuffle occurred Friday at 5 p.m. when hundreds of people were at the scene, including high school students enjoying the holiday, Isle of Palms Police Chief Kevin Cornett said during a press conference.

Five of the victims were teenagers and another was in his 30s, but most suffered non-life-threatening injuries, Cornett said.

Authorities also announced that a 16-year-old juvenile and an 18-year-old were arrested on charges of possession of a stolen firearm, although they have not yet been able to prove their connection to the case.

Since 2020, the United States has experienced more than 600 mass shootings each year and, according to data collected by the Gun Violence Archive site, that implies an increase of more than 75 percent in those events between 2016 and 2022.

This year alone, 94 of these tragic events have already occurred and a total of six thousand 975 people lost their lives due to said cause, of which 285 are under 17 years of age.

At the end of March, the murder of three children and three adults in a school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, rekindled the debate on gun control in the United States.

According to a tally by CNN, it was the 19th such event at a school or college so far in 2023 in which at least one person was injured.

Last summer, President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan gun safety bill into law.

The legislation strengthens background checks for purchasers between the ages of 18 and 21 but does not establish impediments for assault rifles, which have been present in the nation's deadliest shootings. (Source: PL)