Spring break horror as gunman kills one and injures another in Miami Beach

Gunfire erupted in an area of Miami Beach crowded with party goers enjoying booze-filled nights out for spring break, killing one person, wounding another and sending dozens scrambling for safety.

Two men were shot Friday night, and one person was detained at the scene, the Miami Beach Police Department tweeted. 

It wasn’t clear if the person being held was the shooter. Police also said four guns were recovered.

The shooting happened on South Beach’s Ocean Drive which is closed to vehicle traffic along its busiest stretch.

One person was killed and another wounded sending dozens scrambling for safety

Gunfire erupted in an area of Miami Beach crowded with party goers enjoying booze-filled nights out for spring break. One person was killed and another wounded sending dozens scrambling for safety

Several blocks were cordoned off with yellow crime scene tape as police took one person into custody in connection with the incident - its remains unclear if they were the shooter

Several blocks were cordoned off with yellow crime scene tape as police took one person into custody in connection with the incident – its remains unclear if they were the shooter

One of the victims died at a hospital and the second person was listed in critical condition. Their identities are yet to be released.

Footage of the incident showed people diving for cover and running from several gunshots being fired. Several blocks were cordoned off with yellow crime scene tape.

Police are yet to comment on why the shooting took place and comes as the second in many years during spring break on South Beach. 

Last year, the city imposed a midnight curfew following two shootings also on Ocean Drive – the same was not imposed after this week’s shooting.

The year before that, there were about 1,000 arrests and dozens of guns confiscated during a rowdy spring break that led Miami Beach officials to take steps aimed at calming the situation.

It comes after Henry Meacock of Westfield, New Jersey, who was studying finance at Ohio State University died during spring break.

His sister confirmed the heartbreaking death – days after another student suffered a brain bleed while relaxing with friends in Mexico.

It remains unclear where Meacock died, or how, but his sister Ellie paid an emotional tribute to her sibling.

‘My baby brother, I can’t believe it,’ she wrote on Instagram.

‘Words cannot describe how much I miss you. It hurts to breathe without you.

College students party at Clayton's Beach Bar and Grill in South Padre Island, Texas

College students party at Clayton’s Beach Bar and Grill in South Padre Island, Texas

St Patrick's Day Spring Breaker enjoy the Beach front bars and beaches. Many opted for wearing the Irish Green at Fort Lauderdale Beach

St Patrick’s Day Spring Breaker enjoy the Beach front bars and beaches. Many opted for wearing the Irish Green at Fort Lauderdale Beach

A man was seen drinking straight from a bottle of liquor in South Padre Island, Texas

A man was seen drinking straight from a bottle of liquor in South Padre Island, Texas

The booze-filled weekends are often also marred with alcohol related incidents being kept under control by a heavy police presence

The booze-filled weekends are often also marred with alcohol related incidents being kept under control by a heavy police presence

Bikini-clad women are often seen posing by the coastline as they prepare for more days of partying

Bikini-clad women are often seen posing by the coastline as they prepare for more days of partying

‘You are an extremely special soul that will live on forever. The most beautiful boy inside and out. Nobody will ever have a smile quite like yours.’

She praised his spirit, adding: ‘I admire you in every way.

‘The joy you brought to the people around you will never be forgotten.’

And she said she was thankful for their sibling bond.

‘I am so extremely grateful for the amazing relationship we had. There is no one else I’d rather confide in. I love you forever and ever my best friend.’

Just days before Meacock’s death, Liza Burke, suffered a brain bleed.

She was recovering in hospital after being found unconscious in her bed in Mexico. 

The condition was genetic, but it is unclear whether it had been aggravated by something in particular.

Burke was enjoying her ‘last spring break’ with a large group of friends in Cabo San Lucas when she was struck down by the brain hemorrhage on March 10.

Burke went to bed after breakfast complaining of a sore head. Her friends checked on her a few hours later, and called an ambulance when they were unable to rouse her. 

A member of the Navy patrols the Gaviota Azul beach during the beginning of the spring break, in Cancun, Mexico

A member of the Navy patrols the Gaviota Azul beach during the beginning of the spring break, in Cancun, Mexico

Due to dangerous rip current the water is closed to swimming, but that didn't stop students from Texas, Tennessee, Alabama and Iowa from descending on Panama City Beach

Due to dangerous rip current the water is closed to swimming, but that didn’t stop students from Texas, Tennessee, Alabama and Iowa from descending on Panama City Beach

A member of the Mexican Navy patrols the tourist area of Cancun, Quintana Roo state, Mexico

A member of the Mexican Navy patrols the tourist area of Cancun, Quintana Roo state, Mexico

Young tourists, mainly from the U.S. pose for pictures with a Mexican Navy officers in Cancun, Quintana Roo state, Mexico

Young tourists, mainly from the U.S. pose for pictures with a Mexican Navy officers in Cancun, Quintana Roo state, Mexico

US students on spring break, known as "spring-breakers", flocked to the Mexican Caribbean despite warnings from Washington not to travel to the southern neighbour due to a wave of attacks on US citizens

US students on spring break, known as ‘spring-breakers’, flocked to the Mexican Caribbean despite warnings from Washington not to travel to the southern neighbour due to a wave of attacks on US citizens

The young student was rushed to hospital, where Burke was diagnosed with Arteriovenous malformation (AVM), Fox News reported.

She was rushed to a hospital and put on life support. A GoFundMe page set up to help Burke raised $130,000, with the cash used to fly her to Jacksonville in Florida, where her mom Lauren McKeithen lives, for further treatment.

Burke is said to have shown ‘promising signs’ after undergoing surgery in Mexico, with McKeithen saying her daughter had been able to squeeze her hand. 

She told Channel2: ‘We are told to take things one day at a time and not get our hopes too high, but to have plenty of hope,

According to the Mayo Clinic, AVM is a ‘tangle of blood vessels that irregularly connects arteries and veins, disrupting blood flow and oxygen circulation.’ 

Scientists are unsure what causes the condition, but said it isn’t usually hereditary. 

People are born with the condition, although it is more likely to cause brain bleeds later in life. It tends to affect men more often than women.  

Jennifer Ritter, who organized a GoFundMe fundraiser for Burke, said her friend had been born with the condition, but that they’d only discovered this after she fell seriously ill. 

Burke was one of a dwindling number of spring breakers to venture to Mexico this year, after a recent spate of frightening crimes triggered safety fears.

Henry Meacock, an Ohio State student from New Jersey, died suddenly on Spring Break, his sister has confirmed

Henry Meacock, an Ohio State student from New Jersey, died suddenly on Spring Break, his sister has confirmed

Ellie Meacock praised his spirit and smile, adding: 'It hurts to breathe without you'

Ellie Meacock praised his spirit and smile, adding: ‘It hurts to breathe without you’

Henry Meacock is seen with his sister Ellie, mother Colleen and father Will

Henry Meacock is seen with his sister Ellie, mother Colleen and father Will

Earlier this month, three men and a woman from North Carolina were abducted at gunpoint while on a trip booked so the woman could get a tummy tuck.

Two of the men were brutally murdered in the Gulf Cartel kidnapping, with the third man and woman surviving the harrowing ordeal. 

The members responsible for the kidnapping were handed into authorities by cartel bosses and now six are being charged in relation to the incident.  

Terrifying stories of drug overdoses, death, gunfire and kidnappings haven’t swayed American college students from hearing to more temperate locations to soak up the sun as hundreds-of-thousands flock to the coastlines for spring break.

With COVID restrictions lifted, tourism experts hoped for a bumper season, a prophecy seemingly being fulfilled as pictures of booze-filled nights out and packed beaches continue to surface.

In Panama City, over 200 people have been arrested so far, said J.R. Talamantez, chief of police.

‘Spring break this year has gone how we expected it to first couple of weeks in March,’ he told WJHG.

‘We have had couple of people here and there who want to test the limits and our ability to enforce spring break – and currently they’re realizing, as they sit in the Bay County jail, that we can handle business.’

He said the vast majority of students behaved well, but some drank to excess and faced charges.

‘What we are seeing now is crime associated with drunken behavior caused by college students,’ he said.

‘Unfortunately going home with criminal record.’

He said the arrests had been for drinking on the beach, DUI and possession of narcotics.

Liza Burke, pictured right, suffered a serious brain bleed during a spring break trip to Mexico

Liza Burke, pictured right, suffered a serious brain bleed during a spring break trip to Mexico

The University of Georgia student has since been diagnosed with a condition called Arteriovenous malformation, and has been flown home to Florida for further treatment.

The University of Georgia student has since been diagnosed with a condition called Arteriovenous malformation, and has been flown home to Florida for further treatment. 

About 50 citations so far have been written for drinking on the sandy beach, which is illegal during the month of March. 

The ordinance was created to control spring break chaos.

‘We’ve given a lot more warnings than citations,’ Talamantez said. 

‘And the only way we can enjoy that is if everybody follows the law and keeps a very family friendly destination.’

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