Two deputies in Greenville County, South Carolina, were seriously injured during a SWAT training exercise when they were shot with live breaching rounds instead of blanks. The incident happened on July 29 at a vacant school building where officers were practicing room clearing.
According to Sheriff Hobart Lewis, the rounds used were taken from a plastic bag in a desk drawer rather than from the sheriff’s controlled armory. The deputies believed the ammunition was blanks, as they had followed procedure by test-firing the rounds. However, they fired into a berm from too far away and didn’t realize the rounds were breaching rounds, which contain gunpowder and are powerful enough to knock down doors at close range.
During the exercise, an officer playing the role of a suspect fired the shotgun loaded with these breaching rounds. Two deputies were hit—one was shot in the groin, severing an artery, and the other was struck just below the armpit, right above his bulletproof vest. Thanks to quick action and the use of tourniquets, both deputies survived. They required emergency surgery and remain off duty a week later.
No criminal charges have been filed, but internal investigators are reviewing the incident. Sheriff Lewis said those responsible for handling the ammunition may face disciplinary action. He also assured that such a mistake—keeping rounds loose in a plastic bag in a desk drawer—won’t happen again at the sheriff’s office.
As a precaution, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office has paused shotgun training while they investigate the matter further.
This incident serves as a reminder of the risks involved in training and the importance of strict ammunition controls to keep officers safe.