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According to a report in today's Galveston Daily News, a range master at the Texas City shooting range accidentally shot himself in the hand Saturday while trying to clear a jam from a customer's pistol.

According to the article, the bullet struck "the left thumb and exited his wrist."

He was taken by ambulance to UTMB.

http://galvestondailynews.com/story/306898" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

In unrelated news, the Texas City disaster occurred 75 years ago today. About 600 people, including the entire fire department, were killed when two ships loaded with ammonium nitrate exploded.

http://galvestondailynews.com/texascitydisaster" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

- Jim

1. Isn't Texas City where there's a really nice city owned range?

2. I think it was 65 years ago, eh? The photos of the Texas City explosion are very impressive.

Oldgringo wrote:1. Isn't Texas City where there's a really nice city owned range?

2. I think it was 65 years ago, eh? The photos of the Texas City explosion are very impressive.

Yes. It is a very nice range. Been there quite a few times.

A friend of mine was there when this happened (the shooting, not the explosion). His eyewitness account was that a person who was obviously not familiar with firearms was shooting a .380 when "a pin" came out of the firearm and landed at the shooting station next to him. The RO came over and was putting the pin back in the gun. The RO was holding the gun with his hand completely covering the muzzle and did not clear it prior to starting to work on it. The report was accurate that the bullet entered near the meaty part of his thumb and exited from his wrist.

A serious lapse in judgement, unfortunately. I hope the surgeons are able to repair his injury and he has no debilitation. There could be damage from muzzle blast as well, but hopefully he'll recover.

Anytime you are working with a tool, even if it is just a saw or hammer & nail, you have to keep focus. More so with a firearm, I would think. Hope the gentleman recovers fully soon.

I'm sorry the man was injured I'm hoping it was a temporary brain fade and not a representation of the level of competence he has. We all know what the word ASSUME means. Check, double-check, check again and never point a gun at anything you are not willing to shoot.

Hoping for a full and speedy recovery.

Some lessons are easy. Some are hard. I bet he never forgets to check the chamber again.

This incident is not essentially different from a city employee (which the guy is) cutting himself with a saw or falling off a ladder. However, that kind of incident does not get into the paper and require a statement from the mayor.

This range has an excellent safety record. When I was shooting there frequently I asked the range master about it. He said the only reportable accidents that he could remember were a few kabooms with hand loads in rifles.

BTW, hand injuries can be serious. There are a lot of little bones, tendons, and nerves in there.

- Jim

...familiarity breeds contempt... that's why those of us who handle guns often warn and remind each other...often...hope he heals well and soon...

The accidental shooting will prompt a review of the gun range’s safety procedures, Mayor Matt Doyle said.

Investigation by whom -- and by what authority?

Also, the Range Master has an "unfortunate" last name...

sjfcontrol wrote:

The accidental shooting will prompt a review of the gun range’s safety procedures, Mayor Matt Doyle said.

Investigation by whom -- and by what authority?

The city owns the range. The employees are city employees. The city has a safety official—every large organization does.

Cities have a lot of liability for their employees' and public safety, because they are responsible for streets, traffic signals, police, fire, EMS, etc. They operate a lot of heavy machinery like garbage trucks. They get sued all the time by injured employees and members of the public.

Texas City, while a quiet place on any typical day of the week, has oil refineries, chemical plants, and a port that can spawn disasters. It is subject to hurricanes and floods.

- Jim

seamusTX wrote:

sjfcontrol wrote:

The accidental shooting will prompt a review of the gun range’s safety procedures, Mayor Matt Doyle said.

Investigation by whom -- and by what authority?

The city owns the range. The employees are city employees. The city has a safety official—every large organization does.

Cities have a lot of liability for their employees' and public safety, because they are responsible for streets, traffic signals, police, fire, EMS, etc. They operate a lot of heavy machinery like garbage trucks. They get sued all the time by injured employees and members of the public.

Texas City, while a quiet place on any typical day of the week, has oil refineries, chemical plants, and a port that can spawn disasters. It is subject to hurricanes and floods.

- Jim

Ah -- I didn't know it was owned by the city. As Emily Latella would say... "Nevermind!"

I know what you were thinking, but you will never see a shooting or injury accident that isn't investigated by somebody—usually the police. We probably don't want murder disguised as suicide or wife-beating disguised as falling down the stairs.

There were some notorious "suicides" years ago in Texas where someone was shot in the back with a shotgun. In New York suicides prefer drowning in the river with their hands tied behind their back.

- Jim

seamusTX wrote:I know what you were thinking, but you will never see a shooting or injury accident that isn't investigated by somebody—usually the police. We probably don't want murder disguised as suicide or wife-beating disguised as falling down the stairs.

There were some notorious "suicides" years ago in Texas where someone was shot in the back with a shotgun. In New York suicides prefer drowning in the river with their hands tied behind their back.

- Jim

Investigation by the Police to verify that it was truly an accident would not be surprising. (The statement by the 'victim', plus witness statements and any security video should put that to rest quickly.) But the statement made by the mayor was that the safety procedures would be reviewed. OSHA, perhaps, could review safety procedures as they pertain to the employees, but I was unaware of any local agency responsible for reviewing general safety procedures for a privately owned range.

City owned, of course, is an entire different kettle of fish!