Large fight leads to shooting outside two Myrtle Beach area bars, one hospitalized

The Horry County Police Department is investigating a shooting that happened outside two Myrtle Beach bars early Tuesday morning.

Officers were called to the scene around 2:30 a.m. to Klocker’s Tavern and Barfields Bar and Grille along Highway 17 Bypass for a large fight that happened between the two buildings, according to an incident report.

Klocker’s closed at 1 a.m. — an hour and a half before the incident, according to owner Tony Valardo. He said he decided to shut down early as a safety precaution when he saw arguments outside in the parking lot.

One person from the scene showed up to the hospital with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound, the report said. The shooting victim is expected to be OK.

In 2018, Fifteenth Judicial Solicitor Jimmy Richardson asked a judge for a court order to close Klocker’s along with two other bars — citing multiple reports of fighting, assaults and public intoxication in the parking lot, which is now shared with Barfields, an 18+ bar that recently moved to that location.

A two-year agreement between the prosecution team and the former owner of Klocker’s allowed the bar to stay open, under the premise it would install a security system, put new lighting in the parking lot and close at 1 a.m. instead of 2 a.m. during the two years.

It’s unclear if anyone has been arrested in connection to the pre-dawn incident.

Editor’s note: This article has been updated (Jan. 11 at 4:30 p.m..)

This story was originally published January 10, 2023 at 12:08 PM.