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OH: Injured hunter happy to hunt againDecember 24, 2009 West Akron man grateful to be alive 49-year-old survives after father accidentally shoots him in neck while hunting for squirrels in Chippewa Township Louis J. Adams of West Akron is alive. He readily admits he is not sure why he's still alive. But he is grateful and frequently thanks God. He and wife Kelley will celebrate Christmas with 27 family members at her family's house. The 49-year-old survived a potentially deadly hunting accident. ... On Nov. 7, Adams was accidentally shot in the neck by his father while squirrel hunting in Wayne County's Chippewa Township. He was standing 80 yards from his father, Regis Adams, 76, of Akron. The bullet struck the younger Adams at the base of his neck and exited the left side of his neck. The .22-caliber slug did not hit the jugular vein, which probably would have killed him. And it missed his spine, which might have left him paralyzed. ... How it happened Adams and his father were alone about 10 a.m. on private property off Duane Drive near Doylestown. As Louis Adams and his father tell the story: The pair separated while hunting on a sunny morning with temperatures about 40 degrees. The younger Adams went up a hill, then crossed a ravine to hunt in a new area. He saw his father and waved. But he realized later that his father did not acknowledge his wave. The younger Adams was leaning against a tree. He took off his orange hunting cap to scratch his head. He could clearly see his father. But the elder Adams said he could only see what turned out to be the back of his son's head through brush and around a fallen tree. The younger Adams said he saw his father pick up the scoped rifle and look into the woods where Louis had been. The son turned his head and looked to the left. He heard the gunshot and ''then it whacked me,'' he said. He described it as being smacked as hard as possible with a wooden broomstick. He said: ''Then everything went white.'' ''There was a big pain in my neck and I was more than a little scared. Then I tried to move my hands and I realized they moved. I tried to move my feet and I realized they moved. I thought, 'This might not be so bad after all.' '' he said. ''There was blood everywhere.'' The blood soaked through two shirts and Adams' hunting jacket. That's when he pulled off his hunting gloves and used them to stem the bleeding from his wounds. Then the younger Adams called to his father. ''Dad, I think you shot me.'' ... He went deer hunting with his father two weeks after the squirrel-hunting accident. Return to Hunting Accident Index
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