Shooting Fatalities at the Range

[Deus Machina]

There was one that was probably close to fatal posted in rifle country a few months ago of a guy shooting a .50 bmg at a steel plate 100yds away, bullet came back and knocked off his ear muffs. Had it smacked his grape it probably would have been lights out.

This one. Seen it before.

 

[Sistema1927]

Just becarefull how you mention this stuff. This is the things that the brady org would just love to get there hands on.

Why? Sane people know that we don't live in "nerf world" and that accidents are part of life. Think about the number of small children who drown in 5 gallon buckets each year.

 

[Cesiumsponge]

Think about the number of small children who drown in 5 gallon buckets each year.

Enough that they have to rig up this cute warning label

 

[Double Naught Spy]

In the 1990s, the Dallas Pistol Club had a boy shot in the head and was killed during a match. He was actually inside the air rifle building when a round left the match area, entered the building high and apparently was deflected downward, striking the boy.

Around 2000-2002, a man was shot in the buttock (.40 cal, I recall) at the Collin County Gun Club (no longer in business). The round came from an adjoining range, apparently passing through a drain pipe between the two ranges and deflecting upward into his butt after passing through his wallet. I actually chatted at some length with the man about the incident.

In both cases, the resultant woundings would not have occurred had proper safety equipment been in place. At DPC, the shot was believed to have been a high shot that passed through poorly maintained, gapped wooden baffles. At CCGC, the drain pipe was not baffled at all and was just a straight tube between the two ranges.

 

[catbite45]

From the newspaper the Bay City Times (Michigan):

Shooting death at sportsman's club ruled an accident
Posted by The Bay City Times March 10, 2008 16:47PM
Categories: Breaking News, Courts and cops
Investigators say a Sunday-morning shooting death at the Midland Sportsman's Club in Larkin Township was an accident.

Michael W. Laurson, 48, of Midland, was fatally wounded while at the club's shooting range preparing to shoot a revolver, said Midland County Sheriff Jerry Nielsen.

The accident was reported just before 11 a.m. Sunday. The sheriff's office was assisted by the Midland County EMS and Chief Deputy Medical Examiner Dr. Dennis Wagner.

Laurson was target-practicing alone at the outdoor range with "one of several" revolvers.

"It is believed that Laurson slipped and fell to the ground and the revolver he was preparing to fire on the range discharged when the firearm and victim hit the ground," Nielsen said. "No foul play is suspected."

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[catbite45]

Our club has a supervised pre-firearm deer season 'sight-in days'.

Notwithstanding the fact that the rifle range committee has people on the range to keep the dumb things under control, two years ago a guy shot .308 through a .270--twice.

They saw him on the end of the firing line beat the bolt open with one of the wood blocks but by the time one of the committee guys got down there he had shot off the second round.

It is a constant that they have to check each rifle to make sure it is open and empty prior to a cold range, and they have to patrol the line and keep people from touching their rifles while people are down range--because it seems that people can't follow simple written and oral instructions on a basic concept.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

How do you shoot a .308 through a .270?

Other incidents...
http://www.weyi.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=105773
Man apparently tripped and fell with revolver. (oops, see above)

http://www.thetimesonline.com/artic..._news/docd96b982416a1912986257367000cc4de.txt
One officer shot another.

http://www.tactical-life.com/online/news/man-accidentally-shoots-wounds-gun-range-owner/
Gun range owner shot by customer.

 

[catbite45]

We looked it up on the net and it happens from time to time. The round swags down causing high pressures in the gun.

 

[Drgong]

The only range accedent that I have ever seen was I was shooting my M44 rifle and someone at the pistol range was clearling a jam in his Glock 17 when it went off, the poor guy was white as a goast, but thankfully he was pointing it (mostly) downrange at the time.

I personally hope I never loose the repect for guns that I have.

 

[Harley Quinn]

I heard of some gun deaths "suicide" at a location in Elk Grove but it is hush, hush big time not even in a paper. They do have a few in the Sacramento area but they are not telling many about them, some are accidental like the time a sks fired off and kept going because of a fireingpin stuck and turned auto That was a while back...If it is already mentioned, Sorry.

 

[blackcash88]

The trigger return spring on my G19 broke after many years of hard use. If it ever happens in the future when I really NEED it, I now know the pistol will still function. I just have to push the trigger forward to get to reset for each shot.

Also found out that my two P3ATs needed a LOT of work/polishing to function reliably. I know a lot of people buy these things and just drop them into their pocket, purse, etc and trust that it will work without ever test firing or breaking it in.

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

two years ago a guy shot .308 through a .270--twice.

They saw him on the end of the firing line beat the bolt open with one of the wood blocks but by the time one of the committee guys got down there he had shot off the second round.

He'll never make it to middle age....

 

[blackcash88]

And, please tell us, Premium... Exactly HOW do you know how old this guy is?

 

[.22guy]

http://www.kcra.com/news/16871050/detail.html

This happened recently in Modesto, CA.