2023 TPWD Hunting Accidents Report

Sadly, a loaded firearm handled in or around a vehicle takes another life.

Link

Sadly, hunting with other people got a lot of people shot.

Dang!

Gas Poisoning
8/11/23
37/M
26/F
45/M
YES Three (3) hog hunters died in 4-foot-wide hole that contained 8 feet
of water and hydrogen sulfide gas. Apparently one of the hunters
was trying to rescue his dog and was followed in the hole by the
other hunters – all suffered from gas poisoning and died.

https://www.fox7austin.com/news/3-f...falling-septic-well-bastrop-county-texas

Yeah, that was big news when it happened.
https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/t...nd-tank-after-their-dog-fell-in/3314247/

good to see accidents have dramatically dropped since 1966

At first I was concerned the reduction in accidents followed a reduction in hunters but looking at the data it appears the number of licenses sold has dropped a little, but it did increase from last year.

The firearm didn't take a life. A careless person did. If he drove over him with the truck would you say the truck killed him or the driver?

I thought we went down this trail before...

Prayers up for the deceased.

Being younger and not around back in the 60s, what kind of accidents were occurring that were so often fatal? Also interesting that hunting license numbers are what they are while the population has tripled

That’s going to be the advancements in medical care/technology from then until now.

Yep.

I know what Dan meant but this is a basic fact that is often overlooked.

Fantastic read and information. I have a couple youths that I am working with to get an opportunity to hunt. I will require they read this also.

The key word in his sentence is handled. That's not a descriptor of actions of the fire arm. That's a descriptor of the person with the firearm. So I think he is correct. A loaded firearm handled around a vehicle. To restate, unload your firearm when you are in, on or getting in or out of your truck. And please, don't set it down in the bed loaded with your dog running around.

This one is troubling, and an issue that has come up on THF.
"Shooter illegally fired over adjoining property fence at doves outside of a
safe zone of fire. Pellets struck Hondo Police Officer responding to a complaint of pellets striking nearby
houses. Pellets struck officer in his lower leg."
So the yahoos were already peppering neighboring houses, the officer shows up on the complainant's property to investigate, and he, too, gets peppered while on an adjoining property. I hope those hunters served some time.

Also, amazing the number of cases where a dove hunter shoots someone on the other side of the pond. Do guys really dove hunt on both sides of a small tank or pond?
Also, where someone leaves their shooting place to retrieve a dove and either they get peppered or they pepper someone else.

Same ol, same ol. unload when crossing fence, climbing into stand, walking to stand, taking a smoke or pee. Yes it takes time but might save a court date. Safety ON when walking through woods.

Most NG’s occur when a person is putting a firearm into or out of battery so monkeying around with one is more dangerous than leaving it in its state. Between 800,000 law enforcement officers and millions of citizens who carry doing it everyday, nobody loads and unloads a firearm every time they enter into a vehicle.

Very useful and instructive information. A must-read for all of us who handle firearms and hunt.

Unfortunately, in and around vehicles is where hunters often load and unload a firearm.

This incident from the 2021 Report was especially tragic because the shooter was the father of the teenage victim. According to news reports, the father had the gun laying across the seat of his truck while his daughter was standing on the other side...

"While unloading .30-30 lever action rifle with the muzzle pointed towards the victim, shooter let the hammer after “unloading” it. However, there was one more cartridge still in the chamber. (Shooter thought chamber/magazine were empty after unloading a total of four rounds, but there were five total rounds.)"

2018 Report - "Three hunters returned to their truck and as the 7-year old son was attempting to unload his .22 caliber rifle near the driver’s side of the pick-up, he carelessly discharged it towards his father who was standing behind the tailgate. Victim was air lifted to a local hospital after hunting group called 911."

Tragically, the father didn't make it.

Quote the entire post. Leaving a firearm in its condition, rather than screwing around with it, is what savvy people do when getting into a vehicle.

Most hunters suffer the result of unintentional or careless discharges while involved in hunting related activities away from home. In fact, I didn't see a single incident that was at home in the report, but I read through it pretty fast. If location is causative, then hunters should just stay home. So the focus on the vehicle aspect is interesting as injuries do occur there, but not nearly as often as they happen in the field when vehicles aren't around, right? The common and salient issue is in the improper handling of the firearm, not the location.

If you want to focus on location, vehicles aren't particularly significant in the grand scheme as there are numerous common locations of said incidents. These are all locations of transition such as crossing a fence, getting in or our of a stand, crossing a creek, getting in or out of a boat, car, truck, or aircraft (Alaska incidents), before/after the hunt at deer camp, etc. These are all points of transition from one stage of the hunt to another, but the actual location isn't really relevant.

Page 5 of the report lists the most common categories of accidents for the current and several previous years. This makes it easier to identify the situations where accidents are most likely to occur. For example, since 2019, there have been no reported accidents involving hunters getting out of or entering a deer stand. During this same time span, there were nine reported accidents involving vehicles or boats, two resulting in death.

IMO, knowing when and where accidents are most likely to occur can be very valuable to those looking for avoid them. Thankfully, the TPWD helps hunters identify these situations so they can practice greater safety in the field.

Savvy people also point the firearm in a safe direction, and unload it. I don't want a rifle with a chambered round bouncing around inside the truck with me. Both of the above instances would have been avoided by simply pointing the muzzle at the ground.

If the numbers show that hunters handling firearms inside or around vehicles is a common place where accidents occur, why not unload your firearm before leaving the stand and avoid this and other situations in their entirety? IF you feel a situation may arise where a shot becomes necessary, you can always leave rounds in the magazine. Stopping to safely unload your firearm before reaching the vehicle and others is another option. Let's not forget that safety also involves practices that reduce the chance of you being killed or injured a result of the carelessness of others.

Dan, you are correct that unloading at the stand is good practice. I have may times shot game on the way back to the truck, so I do sometimes unload at the stand, and sometimes unload at the truck. I ALWAYS unload with the barrel pointing at the ground though. Always, ALWAYS, ALWAYS!! unload your firearm with the barrel pointing in a safe direction.