Fear, confusion as parents react to shooting near North Charleston baseball field

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - The parent of a child who was playing on a baseball field in North Charleston when shots rang out Monday night says it was one of her worst nightmares as a mom.

Lori Ferguson and her family were at the baseball field Monday night, like they are most nights. Her 8-year-old son, Sylas, was on the pitcher’s mound at Pepperhill Park when she says she heard several sharp cracks. She thought it was fireworks.

She says people started screaming to get down. After grabbing her kids, she looked on the field to see her son Sylas lying down on the pitcher’s mound by himself. He army-crawled to his mom. She said he learned how to do that because of active shooter drills in school. She says she felt helpless, and she says she wants answers about why no one checked on them.

“I just want answers as to why no one came to check on us,” Ferguson said. “No one came to make sure everyone was okay. There were 50 kids out there that I had my hands laid over. Nobody escorted us to the car. No sirens, no lights. I just want answers.”

Ferguson said having police at the games would make her feel safer from now on, and also not having more games at Pepperhill would make her feel safer because she says it is not safe for her children.

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Parent Nikki Shealy says she is not comfortable with bringing her kids back to the field, either.

“I don’t have that confidence to bring my kids out here anymore,” Shealy said. “I’m so shaken. A lot of parents are so shaken. And I don’t know that I’ll have that confidence in two days when they want to resume and that’s when our next scheduled game is on Pepperhill.”

Shealy says her son was playing at Pepperhill Monday night. When her son’s team was in the dugout, he heard gunfire, and they immediately sprung into action. Her husband was in the dugout with him. She says her husband and other parents essentially shielded the kids from any potential harm.

She says that while the kids are okay physically, they may not actually be okay because it was so traumatizing.

“After the shooting subsided, they all started bawling hysterically,” Shealy said.

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