Shooting accident at Little River

[sbd3927]

A MAN is undergoing emergency surgery in hospital after being struck with a bullet in a freak accident at a shooting range west of Melbourne.

Ambulance crews rushed to the rifle range in Gifkins Rd, Little River, after a bullet ricocheted and hit the man in the upper body about 11.10am.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/law-order/man-struck-by-bullet-at-shooting-range-in-little-river/story-fni0fee2-1227168370934

[Oldbloke]

Hope he is OK. Any idea how it happened sbd ?

[sbd3927]

Hope he is OK. Any idea how it happened sbd ?

No idea, saw the article headline just now while ratting around the internet, wondered why I hadn't heard of it, then saw it happened this morning.

[Tony9MM]

Interesting accident but he has been discharged from hospital so I guess he is OK

[scrolllock]

Another little bit here... http://www.9news.com.au/national/2014/1 ... ting-range

Nothing sus according to the copper, just being treated as an accident.

[redrum]

Wonder what it ricocheted off... Pretty flat, open range there right?

[Vati]

Pleased to see the media calling it a "freak accident" and leaving it at that instead of doing a big 'danger' story.

[cavok]

Only goes to show how careful we must be with firearms. Also I have been present at a range where an incident occurred and an ambulance was required urgently over a very serious incident and the person involved was not discharged for over a week, he just tripped and fell very badly.

[bigfellascott]

The range has been closed until further investigations apparently.

[bigfellascott]

A mate, his kids and I were nearly hit by ricocheting pistol projectiles at the Belmont range a few years back, bloody scary to say the least, at that wasn't the only time it happened either! Not nice hearing projectiles zinging past your head or hitting the ground next to you, puts the bloody wind right up ya.

[tom604]

The range has been closed until further investigations apparently.

well say goodbye to going there for a year

[bigfellascott]

The range has been closed until further investigations apparently.

well say goodbye to going there for a year

Ah don't be so dramatic mate - the police will have to do an investigation etc, no big deal, just path of the course I would think.

[KWhorenet]

Was it at solid steel plates/gongs ?

Ive never understood how they could be considered safe. But I guess the experts have it covered.

As a kid shooting low velocity at hard objects was a lesson I escaped close calls without injury.

[anthillinside]

Sporting Shooters
Association of Australia (Vic)

29th December 2014

MEDIA RELEASE

Incident at Eagle Park

Dear subscriber

A shooter sustained a minor injury after being struck in the chest by a ricochet on the Eagle Park main range yesterday morning. The gentleman was evacuated to hospital to be checked by a doctor and was released later in the afternoon.

Eagle Park Range Manager, Paul Schefferle, said the incident was responded to in a very professional manner by staff, police and medical personnel.

This is a timely reminder that although incidents on ranges are extremely rare, they can occur and it is paramount that all shooters comply with range rules and ensure emergency procedures are in place at all times.

The incident will be investigated by SSAA Vic and Worksafe Victoria. SSAA Vic wish the injured gentleman a speedy recovery.

All ranges at Eagle Park are closed until further notice pending an investigation by Victoria Police into yesterday's incident. We will notify you when the range re-opens.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's not the police investigation I fear, they work within clearly defined laws.
I's Worksafe that worries me, they work with "guidelines" that they set.

[tom604]

The range has been closed until further investigations apparently.

well say goodbye to going there for a year

Ah don't be so dramatic mate - the police will have to do an investigation etc, no big deal, just path of the course I would think.

bloke got shot(ankle) on a cull over here and it took two years to restart the culls, work safe may be the problem

[1290]

Sounds like a minor injury, maybe muzzle to ground discharge..... couldn't imagine a field ricochet.

But any opportunity to close a range hey Mr plod... imagine if they closed the Hume hwy each time there was a DEATH! (that would be inconvenient now)

[bigfellascott]

Heres a update from the SSAAVIC

http://ssaavic.com.au/

[cavok]

The incident occurred at the Main Range, the range open to the general shooting public. There is also a large pistol range to the right of the main range, a wester action shooting range well behind and to the right, another internal rifle range again well inside and almost a good 500 metres inside as well as s shotgun range, why close all them, not open to the general public, members of those ranges only, most annoying.

[whert]

bloke got shot(ankle) on a cull over here and it took two years to restart the culls, work safe may be the problem

Just what I read... But yeah, sounds like it was shut for the Work Safe investigation not the Police, as it's clear it's a freak accident and not a crime.

[Oldbloke]

Im puzzled why worksafe is involved. Perhaps it was an employee that was hit?
I will have a look at the worksafe powers under the act.

[cavok]

I have been involved in several investigations where worksafe also had an investigation going. They are a very strange organisation, time and inconvenience means nothing to them, they have no concept of private enterprise, production schedules, they live in noddy land. If an employee hits themselves on the thumb with a hammer they were using, need to shut the whole production down to investigate and see what changes needs to be implemented to see it never happens again, time is not the issue, "it's workers safety". OH, and it's always the employers fault if a worker hits themselves on the thumb with the hammer, simple.

[anthillinside]

Im puzzled why worksafe is involved. Perhaps it was an employee that was hit?
I will have a look at the worksafe powers under the act.

You'll end up more confused than when you started, plus you'll havea headache
You gunna pay the $200+GST to find out "Worksafe runs the world"

[1290]

why the $200?

There are staff onsite....its a workplace.... workplace injury > call in the workplace fuzz.

[anthillinside]

why the $200?

There are staff onsite....its a workplace.... workplace injury > call in the workplace fuzz.

Makes sense to me to.. BUT ....

The place I work had to employ an OH&S officer this year.

200 bucks just buys the National Safety Handbook, and compared to the full legislation and regulations,that I've seen filling 3 book shelves, the National Safety Handbook is just a pamphlet.

I reckon OH&S is the biggest industry in Australia now, if not the world.

[tom604]

time is not the issue, "it's workers safety". ,,,as it should be,,,unless your a boss, then its "lazy bludger,ya still got one leg" be a bit of a muck up if they said ,yeah go ahead and keep running and the same thing happened

[anthillinside]

time is not the issue, "it's workers safety". ,,,as it should be,,,unless your a boss, then its "lazy bludger,ya still got one leg" be a bit of a muck up if they said ,yeah go ahead and keep running and the same thing happened

Totaly agree it's workers safety that is the issue.

But not so much with the time or boss comment.

I've known plenty of workers AND bosses that need a brain transplant so I guess OH&S gets the last say.

Over the last dozen years I've seen an increasing number of instances where OH&S have overidden both common sense worker and boss agreed practice.

In the end it seems you can't legislate against stupidity, but you can legislate for it

[on_one_wheel]

Worksafe ... blody sticky beaks, A bloke in Adelaide got crushed to death by his own car down his own driveway, the report said that worksafe were investigating.

My guess is that those one eyed, time wasting, government bureaucrat, , trouble making " professional " investigators are used for any industrial type accident weather work related or not when there is a accident that the police aren't interested in investigating themselvs, non criminal, not suspicious..

[cavok]

Well it appears there is a consensus that worksafe is a bureaucratic time wasting organisation who appear to have nothing better to do than disrupt a legitimate business and write useless documents. Wonder how one obtains employment in such a useless enterprise, better than any public service job. Guess that's why Australian industry is closing up and leaving our shores, assisted by our useless unions. So close down unions, all of them like the old was it the BLF, Norm Gallagher's mob, and now get rid off the CFMEU, and I did say all of them, useless. Australia appears to be a very expensive country to build anything, Government Red tape, Unions, and Workcover, three (3) organizations or institutions that can stop anything. Sorry I almost forgot the stupid Greens, heritage listing. To my mind any building over 100 years old, to be demolished, here that is.

[T_M]

I wonder if Worksafe would shutdown a farm for a few weeks while they investigate why a shooter slipped in the mud and twisted an ankle...

[Oldbloke]

Been thinking about this & confirming. I believe ssaa has a few paid employees at the range. So its a workplace and workplaces not only need to ensure it's safe for employees but members of th public too. Sections 21 and 23 of the ohs act of vic.(the whs act is much the same) My expectation would be that the range will be closed for a few days while worksafe check out the range rules, training of range officers and supervisipn of shooters. Its some yrs since I visited a range but I believe the controls are well established and enforced, so may not be any dramas.