Hunting-Accident-Leaves-Nebraska-Man-Critically-Injured

Hunting Accident Leaves Nebraska Man Critically Injured

A hunter is in the hospital after an accidental discharge while hunting in Lincoln, Nebraska. The teen is currently in critical condition.

Proper gun safety is important when wielding firearms, especially when hunting. According to KTIV 4, a deer rifle unexpectedly fired during a hunting expedition between two hunters, resulting in serious injury. The 18-year-old got shot in the leg as a result. Local authorities responded to the call.

Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner said the 18-year-old went hunting with a family friend on Thursday (Jan. 14). When the two were packing up to return home, the family friend’s rifle fired as he was putting it in the back of the truck. The shot pierced the back of the truck and struck the teen in the leg.

Authorities transferred the teen to the hospital. He’s currently in critical condition. But doctors expect him to survive. Accidents happen from time to time making practicing proper safety and awareness of one’s surroundings important. Clicking the safety can mean the difference between life and death. Additionally, keeping the finger off the trigger is one of the most important rules for safe firearm handling.

Other Hunting Accidents

In Dec. 2020, an Ohio man accidentally killed his son while deer hunting. The man had mistaken his son for one of the animals and shot him. His son didn’t wear an orange vest required by law as a precautionary measure.

But not all accidents involve misfires or guns. Sometimes a tree stand can be just as deadly and just as devastating. In late December, an Alabama man reportedly died when his tree stand gave out and he plummeted to his death. According to local authorities, the hunter practiced proper safety, calling his death a “heartbreaking accident.”

Other similar accidents were reported last year such as the case of 17-year-old Justin Lee Smith of North Carolina. The teenager died after his tree stand buckled and he fell 10 feet. Unfortunately, Smith landed on the barrel of his rifle, piercing him. The teen managed to call emergency services but he passed away from his injuries before help arrived.

Two more hunters died last year from similar deaths. An Iowa man’s body was found near a tree stand after reportedly falling from it. Likewise, a Pennsylvania man died after a similar fall from a 30-foot-high tree stand.