Woman Rips Out Her Eyes Outside Church, Despite Attempts To Stop Her

Authorities said a 20-year-old South Carolina woman was rushed to a hospital Tuesday after she gouged her own eyes and was discovered holding at least one of her eyeballs outside of a church in Anderson when deputies arrived.

Around 10:30 a.m. EST on Tuesday, Anderson County deputies responded to an incident in an area near the South Main Chapel and Recovery Center and reportedly discovered the woman holding her own eyeballs.

Witness Elizabeth Hiott told local news station NBC-affiliate WYFF that she was working inside South Main Chapel and Mercy Center when somebody yelled at her to call 911.

“It was terrible what I witnessed, it really was,” Hiott said.

“It was across the street, and I could see blood, and could hear her screaming, and I realized something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong,” Hiott told the station. “I immediately called 911 and it almost felt like the 911 dispatcher didn’t even believe me.”

The sheriff's office told Patch.com that the woman was "combative" and reportedly refused to allow emergency medical responders to help her.

The woman has not been identified because she was not charged with any crime, authorities said. Hiott told reporters she had seen the woman visiting the Anderson church occasionally before the gory incident.

There were conflicting reports on Tuesday as to whether the woman was holding only one or both of her eyeballs. Local station WYFF reported that she was holding both, while an Associated Press report said she was holding only one of her eyeballs.

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department did not immediately return a request for comment about the confusion.

Rev. Terry Mitchell, a retired minister who was present at the scene, told the Independent Mail that the woman was on her knees and struggled against people, who were trying to help her get treatment the entire time. Even Anderson residents reportedly tried to stop her but failed in their attempts in keeping her from tearing out her eyeball.

Deputies and emergency workers arrived at the scene and determined the injury to the eye was self-inflicted and the woman was receiving medical treatment.

“Most of our deputies have never seen anything like that,” Sheriff Chad McBride told Fox Carolina. "It took two or three of our guys and two ENTs I believe to kind of subdue her enough for them to start rendering aid."

The woman was then airlifted to a nearby hospital where she received medical treatment. She is in stable condition now and will reportedly be tested in order to determine if drugs played a role in the horrific act.

The sheriff’s office told the Associated Press that since no crime was committed, no charges will be filed in the incident. Jean Stutler, wife of the South Main Chaplel pastor told Fox Carolina that the incident was traumatic for everyone who witnessed the incident. The church held a debriefing in order to help them cope with it.

“Prayer and community and family is what’s going to get us through this,” Hiott told WYFF.