19-Year-Old Woman Gouges Out Own Eyeballs Outside South Carolina Church

Churchgoers at the South Main Chapel and Recovery Center in Anderson, South Carolina, spotted a 19-year-old woman gouging out her own eyeballs outside the church on Tuesday morning.

According to WYFF, members of the congregation were alerted to the teen after they heard her screams.  

“It was terrible what I witnessed, it really was,” Elizabeth Hiott, who works at the church, told WCSC. “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 said that the 911 dispatcher didn’t seem to initially believe what Hiott was telling her.

“I immediately called 911 and it almost felt like the 911 dispatcher didn’t even believe me, that’s how crazy it was,” she said.

Churchgoers were trying to stop the teen from further injuring herself, but she reportedly fought anyone who came near her. The 19-year-old gouged out her eyes, and she was holding both eyeballs in her hands by the time first responders arrived, according to CBS News.

“When I got close enough and they were able to get her stabilized and on a stretcher, I realized then that it was terrible and that she had done something that’s going to traumatize her life forever,” Hiott said. Hiott added that she had occasionally seen the teen at some church services in the past, but she wasn't a regular.

The teen was airlifted to a hospital. Now, investigators will try to determine if drugs played a role in the horrific and tragic incident.

[Photo: Getty Images]