Will Atlantic Beach bike fest change? ‘Stampede’ made national news, draws critics
When the Horry County Fire Rescue reported a mass casualty event in the early hours of Sunday, May 24, the Atlantic Beach Memorial Day Black Pearl Cultural Heritage and Bike Festival made national news — again.
The incident, which HCFR called a “stampede,” left 19 people injured and three hospitalized, sparking scrutiny and criticism. In light of a second year of crowd confusion and hospitalizations, citizens took to social media, arguing what, if anything, should be done.
Despite the recent crowd chaos and criticism, there aren’t currently discussions in place about potential changes for future rallies. Instead, town leadership maintains the annual festival doesn’t need to change.
“The plan that [law enforcement] have worked, so it’s not like anything is broken,” interim Atlantic Beach town manager Titus Leaks said. “They were prepared, they were ready, and they took all the precautionary measures to make sure that the event was safe.”
Officials touted a quick, organized response to the “stampede,” but Leaks dismissed questions about whether organizers could prevent such incidents in the future.
Instead, Leaks pointed to media, arguing the incident was “blown out of proportion.” There were no fatalities, but the “stampede” was reported in national outlets like People and The New York Post.
“This is one of the largest motorcycle rallies in the United States of America, and we have it right here, and instead of embracing the event, it seems like everybody just wants to put a negative light on the event, which is very unfortunate,” Leaks said.
What happened?
The alleged stampede was triggered by an individual who began running, “causing a brief chain reaction within the crowd,” Leaks said in a statement just after 9 a.m. Sunday.
Horry County Fire Rescue posted to its Facebook around 3 a.m. Sunday morning that crews were dispatched just after 1 a.m. to the stage near South Ocean Boulevard in Atlantic Beach.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the Horry County Sheriff’s Office also had law enforcement personnel at the bike fest at the time of the incident. South Carolina Highway Patrol and South Carolina Department of Natural Resources staff also assisted with the festival, though it’s unclear if they were on the scene during the incident early Sunday.
It’s also unclear how many law enforcement officers and emergency responders were working in Atlantic Beach for the bike festival. Leaks did not provide The Sun News with more information on the number of officers requested or how the safety operations were funded.
When asked who requested SLED’s presence in Atlantic Beach and the number of officers stationed there, a spokesperson for SLED told The Sun News that “questions on this matter should be directed to the town of Atlantic Beach at this time.”
SLED did not provide any additional information on the events leading up to, during and after the reported stampede or how many of its officers were in Atlantic Beach. However, SLED said in a previous statement to The Sun News that SLED agents can be requested to provide manpower and technical assistance to support local communities for events.
“SLED is an assisting agency, so it falls under the mission of providing quality manpower and technical expertise to assist in maintaining public safety at such a large event,” the statement said.
Horry County Fire Rescue designated it as a mass casualty incident due to the number of patients, according to its Facebook post. There were no gunshots or fights, and the 16 people who were injured and not transported to the hospital had “minor scrapes and bruises,” Leaks said.
Officers on site got the situation “calmed down relatively quick,” Horry County spokesperson Thomas Bell told The Sun News.
Bell said that, while details aren’t always immediately available in these situations, the agency makes sure people are aware of the incident as it is unfolding.
“State law enforcement agencies were able to get things handled quickly as well, but at the end of the day, it follows the definition of mass casualty for what fire rescue was responding to,” Bell said.
This is the second year in a row where a mass panic among the crowd led to injuries. In 2025, a dozen people were sent to the hospital after fights broke out during the concert. Some people were trampled as they tried to leave the crowd.
Crowds were ‘beyond the festival footprint’
While mainly state agencies assisted with policing inside of Atlantic Beach, other local law enforcement agencies were tasked with handling the crowds surrounding the area.
In the past, the annual bike festival has drawn between 300,000 and 400,000 people throughout the weekend.
Both North Myrtle Beach Police Department and Horry County Police Department coordinate with the town of Atlantic Beach to handle crowd control.
“One of the most significant challenges remains traffic and infrastructure impacts associated with the event,” North Myrtle Beach Police Chief Dana Crowell said in a statement. “The Town of Atlantic Beach does not have sufficient parking capacity to accommodate the volume of vehicles attending the festival.”
Before the holiday weekend, the North Myrtle Beach Police Department released its plan on how it would handle traffic for those who were in town for Memorial Day and others who were attending the festival.
Officers set up a traffic chute Thursday night on Highway 17 from 37th Avenue South to 27th Avenue South. The right lane heading North on the Highway had barricades, separating those who intended to go into Atlantic Beach for the festival from those who were part of regular traffic.
Drivers who got into the barricaded area were looped through Atlantic Beach and then were able to exit around 27th Avenue South.
But as more parking lots in and around Atlantic Beach reached capacity, traffic backed up onto Highway 17, causing people to be gridlocked for at least a couple of hours, North Myrtle Beach Police Spokesperson Desirae Gostlin told The Sun News.
Officers then had to redirect traffic away from Atlantic Beach in order to keep emergency routes open, Crowell said in the statement. People continued to head into Atlantic Beach for events that drew “large crowds beyond the festival footprint.”
The department responded to issues involving gatherings in parking lots, which created “nuisance-related concerns.”
“While the festival area itself closed prior to 2:00 a.m. each night, activity continued well into the overnight hours in surrounding areas,” Crowell said.
Horry County Police Officers also assisted in monitoring unincorporated parts of Horry County near Atlantic Beach.
An average of 60 additional officers worked each day during Memorial Day weekend to help with traffic from the bike festival and other Memorial Day weekend events, Bell said. Horry County Police tend to monitor the areas surrounding the Myrtle Beach Mall as multiple bikers and other people here for the festival congregate in the mall and the parking lot.
Bell said officers were not there to “police the fun” and described it as a “happy atmosphere.” But the department had to shut down the entrance to the mall relatively early due to the amount of people.
“Sometimes it does become a capacity thing, so when that mall hits so many people in there, you don’t want to squeeze too many people, too many bikes, too many vehicles into one spot because it’s just overcrowded,” Bell said. “That’s where accidents can certainly happen.”
Both Bell and Crowell cited the collaboration between local and state law enforcement agencies for helping to ensure public safety. As of now, there are no ongoing discussions about what changes could be made for next year’s bike rally.
North Myrtle Beach Police will start planning its operations for major events for the next calendar year later this summer, according to Gostlin. Horry County plans and coordinates its major events in the month of May at the beginning of each year, Bell said.
“There’s always going to be the ‘Hey, what went well? What can we do better?’” Bell said. “Everyone just wants every event to be a big and safe success for everyone.”
A growing future?
This year’s crowd confusion is far from the Atlantic Beach Black Pearl Cultural Heritage and Bike Festival’s first controversy. Both the festival and the town have a storied history in the Grand Strand.
Atlantic Beach stands out as the only beach in the region that welcomed Black people during segregation. The town was the obvious choice for bikers who felt unwelcome at the predominantly-white Myrtle Beach Spring Bike Rally.
“The reason the event was started was because Black bikers was not welcome to the Myrtle Beach Spring Rally, so we created a safe space for them to have fun, and because they ride bikes as well, and so that’s why the event was even started,” Leaks said.
But since its founding in 1980, the festival has faced high-profile issues, including deadly shootings and traffic lawsuits. Atlantic Beach has been represented by the NAACP in claims of racial discrimination and turned down money then-Governor Nikki Haley offered to kill the festival.
When fights broke out, creating a mass panic, at last year’s festival, 12 people were hospitalized, and no arrests were made.
In the face of public scrutiny, Leaks points to law enforcement coordination and increased revenue streams for local businesses and accommodations through the holiday weekend. He also says the festival gets larger every year, even as the tiny town remains under one-quarter of a square mile.
However, when asked if Atlantic Beach and its law enforcement partners may adjust festival planning, or whether organizers are simply unable to prevent crowd confusion amid growing numbers, Leaks maintained there was no need for a change.
“SLED and EMS and Highway Patrol did everything they could,” Leaks said “They responded within seconds. SLED was on stage within a minute, and the plan that they had in place definitely, definitely worked.”
