Myrtle Beach police respond to 1,300-plus calls during tourist season

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — Myrtle Beach’s beach advisory committee heard details Wednesday about more than 1,300 calls the city’s police department responded to during the recent summer tourist season.

Many of the calls were about beach tents, with beachgoers not always following the city’s ordinances.

“[There were] 297 times that we had to go out after the fire department, the beach services, to ask somebody to remove their tents,” Beach Patrol supervisor Kevin Larke said. “That’s almost 300 times where we had to go in and make them take it down.”

Myrtle Beach police received more than 1,300 calls this summer. Officers went into the ocean 24 times and assisted people in two pools. The department also responded to 46 narcotics calls and made 11 arrests.

Officers also responded to more than 150 fireworks calls, which officials said was fewer than in 2023. Public intoxication led to 32 arrests, while 60 calls were made about disorderly disturbances, 25 of which ended in arrests. People reported suspicious calls for service 73 times.

Also on Thursday, the committee said the city’s franchise agreement renewal for lifeguarding services is moving along. The agreement comes after Myrtle Beach City Council voted to last year to approve separating lifeguard duties from beach rental services. The first reading was last week, and second reading will be on Tuesday.

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Skylar Musick is a multimedia journalist at News13. Skylar is originally from Long Island, New York. She joined the News13 team in June 2024 after graduating from Villanova University in May 2024. Follow Skylar on X, formerly Twitter, Facebook , or Instagram , and read more of her work here .

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Caleb is a digital producer at News13. Caleb joined the team in January 2023 after graduating from Liberty University. He is from Northern Virginia. Follow Caleb on X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here .

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