OCR Text |
Show Report Cites Need For Hunter Safety The need for Uath's comprehensive compre-hensive survival training and hunter safety instruction for first time hunters was cited again this week by department of fish and game officials in a release listing a summary of 10 gun accidents which occurred in the state during dur-ing 1959. The report lists 24 accidents occurring during the hunting of game species, 21 during rabbit hunts, 4 while hunting other non game animals and 21 which did not occur while hunting. Five of the 49 accidents which occurred while hunting game and nongame species resulted in death to the victim, the others in varying degrees of injury. The totals are among the highest high-est turned in by the state in past years and are attributed largely to careless gun handling, coupled with increased use of guns. The report points up the overwhelming over-whelming need of the hunter safety training program which was passed by the 1959 session of the legislature and which becomes be-comes effective April 1. The 1959 accident report com- pilation includes the following data pertaining to hunting accidents: acci-dents: Of the wounds sustained while hunting, 19 were self inflicted. 30 were inflicted by others. Of the accidents 21 occurred while hunting rabbits, 15 during big game hunts, 7 while hunting upj land game birds, and 2 during the waterfowl season. Four accidents acci-dents occurred during other j hunting activities. Most frequent causes 6f the accidents listed 9 cases where the victim was out of sight of the shooter, 5 where the victim was covered by the shooter swinging on game, and 3 each where the victim was mistaken for game, where the trigger was caught on brush, while loading a weapon and during horseplay. Other accidents were caused by victim moving into the line of fire, placing a weapon in or removing it from an automobile, crossing a fence with a loaded gun and the shooter stumbling or falling. |