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Shocking Video ? Fatality Barely Averted
Mk 19
Member Posts: 8,170
This video will give you chills (starting at about the 0:25 mark). We need to remember to follow all the firearms safety rules, and apply them all the time. At the range, all it takes is one brief moment of inattention to create a life-threatening situation. Never assume the downrange area is safe. Use your own eyes and ears.
This video shows a competitor shooting a stage at an action pistol match. He starts when instructed by the Range Safety Officer (RSO). But unbeknownst to both RS0 and competitor, a volunteer is downrange working on targets. Watch carefully. At 0:27 the shooter sweeps left to right, engaging a paper silhouette target to his right. Then, at 0:30, as he begins a mag change, his head turns downrange. A few yards away is a white-shirted range worker! The shooter yells "Hey what's going on?!"
What's going on indeed. The RSO should have ensured that nobody was downrange before the shooter even stepped up to the firing line. If other competitors standing to the side had been alert, they might have seen the worker changing targets and called for a halt. And the target-worker himself - even if he was wearing earmuffs, he should have noticed that live fire had commenced just yards away.
We also have to wonder about the stage design. This set-up made it very difficult to see downrange. The white panels (see 0:10-0:20) definitely hid the target worker from view. In hindsight, given the way the stage was laid out, this was truly an "accident waiting to happen". It's fortunate that no one got injured in this incident. But this chilling video provides a lesson to all shooters - "Safety First".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8tft9tBQ0g
This video shows a competitor shooting a stage at an action pistol match. He starts when instructed by the Range Safety Officer (RSO). But unbeknownst to both RS0 and competitor, a volunteer is downrange working on targets. Watch carefully. At 0:27 the shooter sweeps left to right, engaging a paper silhouette target to his right. Then, at 0:30, as he begins a mag change, his head turns downrange. A few yards away is a white-shirted range worker! The shooter yells "Hey what's going on?!"
What's going on indeed. The RSO should have ensured that nobody was downrange before the shooter even stepped up to the firing line. If other competitors standing to the side had been alert, they might have seen the worker changing targets and called for a halt. And the target-worker himself - even if he was wearing earmuffs, he should have noticed that live fire had commenced just yards away.
We also have to wonder about the stage design. This set-up made it very difficult to see downrange. The white panels (see 0:10-0:20) definitely hid the target worker from view. In hindsight, given the way the stage was laid out, this was truly an "accident waiting to happen". It's fortunate that no one got injured in this incident. But this chilling video provides a lesson to all shooters - "Safety First".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8tft9tBQ0g
Comments
At about the 0:19 mark the shooter fires rounds right past the guy, how the hell did he not see a man standing a couple feet to the left of his target?
When that buzzer goes off many people get tunnel vision and see nothing but the target. They're too wound up about shooting fast and not so concerned about safety. I could see it being especially bad in a situation like this where someone in charge (the SO) has declared the range clear and ready.
As an RO you never let your guard down. SAFETY, SAFETY and more SAFETY.
My hope is that the RO who allowed this to happen on the range he was in charge of, got his nuts kicked up into his throat and then USPSA took his RO card away and then banded him from any and all USPSA shooting, FOR LIFE !!
And where the hell was the asst. RO ????????
As for the guy down range............ Just what kind of ear muffs was he wearing ???? He didn't hear gun shots ??? New glasses......Didn't see dust strikes by him ?????
Thank God, no one was hurt.