South Carolina mall evacuated Saturday after 'active shooter' reported

A search was underway at a South Carolina shopping center on Saturday after reports of gunfire in the area, police in the state capital of Columbia said.

Officers were evacuating the Columbiana Centre mall, about 10 miles northwest of the State House in downtown Columbia, and talking with potential witnesses, the Columbia Police Department said on its Twitter account.

Lieutenant Curtis Wilson of the Richland County Sheriff's Department told local broadcaster WACH that preliminary reports suggested the shooting was an isolated incident involving two people, rather than an active shooter situation.

Earlier, Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin sent a Tweet on his account reading: "Urgent! Report of an active shooter at Columbiana Center Mall. Please avoid the mall and Harbison Blvd if possible."

A representative of the Columbia police could not be immediately reached for comment. A dispatcher for the Richland County Sheriff's Department forwarded questions to police.

(Reporting By Frank McGurty in New York and Curtis Skinner in San Francisco)

This is video from inside the mall, posted to Instagram.

Shots fired at #ColumbianaMall. #Police in swat gear looking for shooter. We're trapped in #DazzleUp. #KidsScared #Pray

A video posted by Anabell Martin (@aos_author) on Feb 20, 2016 at 4:20pm PST