CONCORD, N.C.,None — Employees at a Concord shooting range are reviewing their safety procedures after an accidental shooting Wednesday afternoon.
Police have not yet released the victim's name.
Witnesses said he was shot one time, but the bullet traveled through his right hamstring and lodged in his lower left leg.
Employees at the Eagle Gun and Range said they are evaluating what they can do differently to make sure another shooting incident does not happen.
The gun range has been open for less than a year.
Employees said safety is their top priority. All new visitors are shown a safety video, sign waivers, and are given verbal warnings before they shoot.
"It's sad and it's very frustrating. You never want to see this," said Shannon Foster, an employee at the gun range.
Foster said two friends were shooting together at the range Wednesday afternoon. He said one of the men finished shooting and thought the gun was empty.
He should have put the gun down, but instead he held on to it, with his finger on the trigger. When the man turned around, he accidentally shot his friend in the leg.
"It says in the video to absolutely check your weapon and then leave it down on the range line. But he did not do that," Foster said.
Just minutes before the shooting, the men were shown a 10-minute safety video. The lesson of putting the gun down is brought up within the first 15 seconds.
"There's a couple of safety rules we want to go over," the instructional video begins. "Don't point your gun at anything you don't want to shoot."
"We'll look at everything we can do. We'll sit down and evaluate this," Foster said.
Foster said the staff will now give an additional, last second reminder to visitors that they need to follow all safety precautions.
Concord police are still investigating, but officers agree that it was an accidental shooting.
No criminal charges have been filed.
WSOC
