Tragedy: Don’t Shoot Near the Truck
No way to end a hunt....
Headline sound obvious? Maybe so. Read on.
If you regularly track bird-hunting news, like we do, you unfortunately see regular accounts of hunting injuries, including a few fatalities. Driving a car is still far more dangerous than taking a shotgun afield, but that doesn’t make the stories about hunting accidents feel any better.
One that’s worth passing on happened last Sunday in northern California. Here’s what happened, from the San Francisco Chronicle – and when you read it, you’ll know why we’re talking about it:
> A man killed in a hunting accident near Highway 37 in the North Bay was struck by a shotgun round when he got out of his truck at the moment someone in his group opened fire at a bird, authorities said.
> William Daniel Downs, 50, of Napa was shot in the back of his head at about 4:15 p.m. Sunday, said Sonoma County sheriff’s Capt. Matt McCaffrey.
> The shooter “was tracking a bird from left to right while standing to the rear of a truck Downs was sitting in,” McCaffrey said Wednesday. “As that person fired at a bird, Downs simultaneously stepped out of the driver’s side of the truck and was struck in the back of the head by the shotgun round.”
> Downs’ 11-year-old son and two of the victim’s friends were hunting pheasant with him. The sheriff’s office has declined to say who fired the fatal shot. Investigators have confirmed that Downs’ death was accidental and that no crime occurred, McCaffrey said.
Wow. Tough to read. Tragic for sure.
Guys, please remember that guns are deadly, and no bird is worth a potential accident. We’ve passed up dozens of birds just because we weren’t 100% sure all was safe, and don’t regret a single one. There’s always another chicken around somewhere.
And don’t get so focused on the bird that you forget where other folks are.
We’re sure this is preaching to the choir, so don’t forget to tell new folks this stuff – and “new” can mean people you haven’t hunted with before. That always gives us the willies.
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
