Capt. Cliff Arnette, spokesman for the Dillon County Sheriff's Office, said deputies arrived at 1556 West Main Street around 2 p.m. in reference to a death.
Dillon County Coroner Donnie Grimsley has identified the victim as Sirlinda Hayes, a neighbor of the dogs' owner. Officials say the attack occurred in the backyard of another neighbor's house.
The dogs' owner, whose name has not been released, was taken to the hospital after suffering injuries in the attack when his dogs suddenly turned on him.
While officials say Hayes' death appears to be the result of a dog attack, investigators are waiting for an autopsy for more details before determining an official cause of death. Grimsley said the autopsy will take place Friday at Grand Strand Regional Hospital.
Grimsley also said results could come back as early as Friday afternoon.
The two Rottweilers from the attack were killed, however, investigators have not said exactly who shot the dogs at this point.
Neighbors said they hadn't seen any problems with the dogs before.
"They [were] pretty dogs. He looked like he was taking care of the dogs, and it just, they never bothered anybody," Larry German said.
Investigators have removed three other dogs not involved in the attack from the property, and taken them to a shelter as they continue to investigate the incident.
This is not the first time a dog attack has killed a person in Dillon County.
On Nov. 16, 25-year-old Justin Lane of Latta was killed in his home shortly after 11 a.m. when the family pit bull attacked him.
The dog, named Smoke, was later put down.
(WMBF - February 17, 2011)
