Woman fell from wall in popular North Myrtle Beach store, witnesses, rescue say
A North Carolina woman was visiting North Myrtle Beach on her 44th birthday when she fell from a from a beachwear store’s climbing wall and taken to the hospital, witnesses said.
Jason Skrobacz, from Pennsylvania, was with his family in the Pacific Beachwear store located at 2618 Highway 17 South on Sunday, Aug. 10 when they witnessed the incident. Skrobacz’s 11-year-old daughter was about to climb the wall herself when the woman called out, saying that her safety harness was not attached, and plummeted from the top of the wall, leaving the girl “terrified.”
“At some point going up the wall, her harness came loose from the carabiner,” Skrobacz said. He added that the woman was “bleeding from her mouth a lot,” and was concerned that she had broken her back as she remained lying on the floor.
Pacific Beachwear did not respond to The Sun News’ requests for comment about the incident. Staff members working at the store during an Aug. 14 visit from a reporter said they were not present during the incident and didn’t know anything about it.
North Myrtle Beach Fire Rescue confirmed that they responded to a call that day about a woman falling in the store, but further information was unavailable as the woman’s transport to the hospital was handled by the county, not the city.
The Sun News has requested further information about the event from Horry County.
The woman did not respond to requests for comment, but Skrobacz said she shared she was still in the hospital the day after the incident awaiting further testing when she responded to his Facebook post about the incident.
The beachwear store houses a climbing wall near its front windows, which extends to the ceiling and has various themed panels, from Legos to colorful sea turtles. Customers are able to climb the wall during their shop, with staff assistance.
However, Skrobacz and his wife, Morgan Skrobacz, said that staff supervision during the incident was lacking. Morgan Skrobacz said once her daughter got ready to begin her climb, no staff members were around, and they were not required to sign a waiver before the climb.
Even after the woman’s fall, Jason Skrobacz said, a staff member called 9-1-1 and then “went back to doing what he was doing.” Jason and Morgan Skrobacz stayed with the woman and helped calm down her young son while they awaited emergency personnel.
No legal action surrounding the incident has yet been filed, according to Horry County court records.
This story was originally published August 18, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
