Rioters in Charlotte attempted to throw a photographer into a fire they started, a local news station reported Wednesday night.

WCCB said in a tweet at 10:48 p.m. that its reporters witnessed “protesters” attempting to burn the photographer.

#WCCB witnessed protesters try to throw still photographer into fire in Uptown #Charlotte. https://t.co/T6i8AH5iGu #CharlotteProtest #news pic.twitter.com/t26WgIlwOh

— WCCB, Charlotte's CW (@WCCBCharlotte) September 22, 2016

The statement was repeated by reporter Marvin Beach on WCCB’s livestream of the riots, who said the station’s photographer witnessed the attack. It’s unclear why the effort failed, but WCCB’s livestream later captured police providing assistance to the photographer, indicating he was rescued without suffering grievous harm.

The photographer in question was white, raising the possibility he may have been targeted by for racial reasons by mostly-black rioters.

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory has declared a state of emergency in the city, so that National Guard can be deployed to assist police in quelling the riots.

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Copyright 2016 The Daily Caller News Foundation