Despite Gretna death, officials say hunting is safe

By Carrie J. Sidener

Published: November 14, 2008

Following the death of a hunter in Gretna earlier this week, hunters and game officers maintain that the sport is safe.

 
Safety reminders for hunters
- Be aware of where the muzzle is pointed and never leave a loaded gun lying around.
- Make sure to clearly identify the target as well as what is behind it. Other hunters have been shot because they were behind an animal and the shooter did not notice.
- If hunting from a tree stand, always use a safety harness while using and climbing into and out of the stand.
- When going on a hunt, tell someone where you are going and when you intend to return. It’s also a good idea to carry a cell phone or two-way radio.
- Don’t move seriously injured victims. Treat them for shock, stop the bleeding, and go for help, marking the trail on the way out.
- Wear blaze orange at all times to let other hunters in the area know where you are.
- To locate a Hunter Safety Education Course near you or to learn more about the class, visit http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/hunting/education/.

Wayne Philip Logan, of Gretna, was fatally shot Tuesday when he climbed into some thick brush while rabbit hunting off Terry Road and his firearm discharged. The death is still under investigation.

There were 47 firearm-related hunting incidents during the last fiscal year in Virginia. Of those, four were fatalities and eight were self-inflicted, according to Julia Dixon, spokeswoman for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. There were another 15 incidents involving falls from tree stands, and one resulted in a death.

“Hunting as a sport is extremely safe,” said Crystal Wiedman, hunter education specialist for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. “There were 250,000 to 300,000 licensed hunters last year. One in 6,000 were involved in a hunting- related incident. That’s anything from a broken leg, to a cut hand — something that involves more than first aid. It’s safer than driving to work.”

Vernie Kennedy, president of the Virginia Hunter Education Association, said since state law mandated a hunter safety educa-tion course in 1988, incidents decreased some 25 percent.

Hunter education is mandatory for 12- to 15-year-olds and first-time hunters, according to the game department’s Web site. The courses, conducted by volunteers and conservation police officers across the state, teach hunting safety, principles of conservation and sportsmanship to 14,000 people each year. In Bedford County alone, 405 students have taken the classes this year.

The classes are provided free of charge.

“Hunting is not dangerous,” Kennedy said. “More people are injured in bathroom falls than in hunting, but any fatality is too many.”

 
Gun-related hunting incidents in Virginia
- July 2006 –June 2007
47 firearms incidents; of those, four were fatalities, eight were self-inflicted
- July 2005 –June 2006
33 firearms incidents; of those, none were fatalities, 11 were self-inflicted
- July 2004 –June 2005
25 firearms incidents; of those, five were fatalities, 14 were self-inflicted
- July 2003 –June 2004
28 firearms incidents; of those, two were fatalities, seven were self-inflicted

Those without hunting experience can get an apprentice license that is valid for two years to get acquainted with the sport before taking the safety course.

Wiedman said some hunters have taken the course two or three times, sitting through it with each of their children. She said many have told her they relearned things they had forgotten.

Virginia law also requires hunters to wear blaze orange, visible from all sides.

Wiedman said one disturbing trend in hunting-related accidents is tree stand falls. Each year in Virginia people are seriously injured or killed when they fall from a tree stand or it collapses beneath them.

She said everyone hunting from a tree stand should always wear a safety harness.

The danger comes, Kennedy said, when hunters become careless.

‘The biggest thing is not using a safety harness and the tree limb breaks, or the hunter falls asleep and they fall out,” Kennedy said. “That’s just hunter carelessness.”

The other common injury in hunting is gunshot wounds to the feet, particularly among young hunters. They get fatigued easier and may rest the gun on their shoe. Then it accidentally fires.

“It’s a completely avoidable incident,” she said. “It goes back to muzzle control — pointing it in a safe direction at all times. Another is not loading the gun until you are in the place you are going to shoot and not putting your finger near the trigger until you are ready to shoot.

“We encourage the use of a safety, but that is a mechanical device and devices fail.”