OUTER BANKS, N.C. — One person died and another was seriously hurt and medflighted following a shooting at the Avalon Fishing Pier on Thursday afternoon, according to the Kill Devil Hills Police Department. Now, the pier is sharing some good news about the person who was shot and taken to the hospital: He is already back at the pier and ready to fish, according to a post shared on Avalon Pier’s Facebook page Friday.
Full press conference: Police share information on how law enforcement found Avalon Pier shooting suspect
The person who survived is a 15-year-old boy, according to his father who spoke with News 3 shortly after the shooting. The teen was shot in the thigh, the father says, during the incident, prompting officials to medflight him to Norfolk for treatment. He says they're visiting from Pennsylvania — Pittsburgh, according to the pier — and his son had been enjoying fishing at the pier all week.
Avalon Pier’s post says the boy is back at the pier, just one day after getting shot. His current state “has truly lifted our spirits,” the post notes. The post includes a heartwarming picture of the boy with a woman who the pier says helped him before the ambulance arrived.
The pier's post also takes issue with the violence that unfolded Wednesday, stating, “this community is currently doing some serious soul-searching from this incident.”
The shooting happened around 2:37 p.m. in the fishing pier's parking lot, Kill Devil Hills police say. When officers arrived minutes later, they found the two people who were shot, police added.
The accused shooter drove away, police say, but law enforcement used descriptions from witnesses to identify the suspect. He was taken into custody later that day in Southern Shores.
Watch: 1 dead, 1 medflighted in shooting at Avalon Fishing Pier; suspect in custody
While police haven’t shared what they believe the shooter’s motive was, Avalon Pier's Facebook post claims the shooting unfolded due to a feud between two people.
“…our property was used as an end to a feud between two young individuals as one of them was coming off the beach,” the pier’s post notes.
The pier's post also claims the young man who was medflighted was an innocent bystander was shot in the leg from a ricochet bullet, although police have not shared details on this aspect of the shooting yet.
We have a crew working to learn more about the shooting. Stay with News 3 for updates.
