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At least two people were killed and another injured in a mass shooting at South Carolina State University on February 12, school officials announced. This latest gun-related incident has rocked the American university community.
South Carolina State University officials announced in a statement that the campus was placed on lockdown at approximately 9:15 p.m. local time on Thursday, February 12, after a shooting was reported at the Hugin Suites student housing complex. The school is located in Orangeburg, South Carolina, approximately 72 kilometers southeast of the state capital, Columbia.
Investigators with the South Carolina Department of Law Enforcement are investigating the shooting, school officials said. The identities of the victims, the condition of those injured, and whether the suspect in the shooting is still at large are not known at this time.
The campus remains on lockdown as of 3 a.m. ET on February 13th. USA TODAY has reached out to the university and the South Carolina Department of Law Enforcement for comment.
The school announced on Facebook that Friday’s classes have been cancelled. “Students will be attended to by counselors.”
South Carolina State University was founded in 1896 and has more than 3,000 students, according to the school’s website. The school is the only public black college in the state.
The South Carolina incident comes after a mass shooting at Brown University in December 2025 that killed two students and injured nine others. In October 2025, a mass shooting on the campus of South Carolina State University left one person dead and another injured as the school was hosting a homecoming celebration.
Contributor: Christopher Cann, USA TODAY
