Safe Hunting?
Two Types of Hunting Accidents
An article in the Courier Journal of Louisville, Kentucky
listed hunting accidents of two types – accidents that involved one person
(column A) and accidents involving more than one person (column B). Hunting
is dangerous, folks – don’t try this at home.
A)
A 40-year-old man fell from a tree stand, resulting in a
serious injury. The victim was not wearing a safety harness.
A 70-year-old woman was lowering her .270-caliber rifle
from her tree stand when the string broke. The rifle discharged upon hitting
the ground, striking her in the knee.
A 32-year-old man was injured in a fall from a tree stand.
A 65-year-old man died in a fall when his hand-built stand
broke from the tree to which it was attached.
Another hunter was killed when his muzzleloader discharged
while he was crossing a fence.
B)
A 68-year-old hunter failed to properly identify his
target and fired, wounding another 68-year-old hunter who was not wearing
state-required blaze-orange clothing.
A hunter with his bow at full draw tripped or stumbled and
shot his partner, who was standing beside him. Both hunters were younger
than 18. The injury was not fatal.
Mac Lang, hunter training supervisor for the Fish and
Wildlife Department, says "A lot of accidents go unreported because people
are embarrassed by them,"