Record number of guns found at S.C. airports in 2022.

Transportation Security Administration officers at South Carolina airports discovered a record number of 79 firearms in travelers' carry-on luggage in 2022, a new annual record for the state.

In addition, Charleston International, Greenville-Spartanburg International and Columbia Metropolitan Airports all posted record firearm detections last year, according to a news release from the TSA. Each of the firearms were discovered by TSA officers during the routine screening of carry-on property at airport security checkpoints.

Officers found 32 firearms at the Charleston International Airport, 21 at Greenville International Airport and 15 at the Columbia Metropolitan Airport, the release said. They also found 10 firearms at Myrtle Beach International Airport and one at Florence Regional Airport.

Statewide in 2022, TSA screened approximately 6.54 million departing travelers at the six commercial South Carolina airports, a 17.6 percent increase over the total number screened in 2021, according to data released by the TSA.

Nationwide, a firearm was detected for every 116,394 passengers screened. In South Carolina, the rate was even higher, with one firearm discovered for every 82,819 passengers screened...