Safety Is No Accident

[Asa_Yam]

Yesterday, I came across this post on another board. I cannot speak for its accuracy, nor its details. ,Frankly, I don't think naming names or pointing fingers is important.) However, the incident is troubling, in that basic safety and oversight procedures were not followed. Fortunately, nobody was hurt.

... Yesterday I was working at my club assisting in a 300 yard bench rest match. I was on the target crew. Our job was to go downrange after each stage retrieve the shot targets and post new targets. After each stage of shooting the guy running the line gives the cease fire command, remove bolts, remove equipment from the line, and then tells the target crew to proceed. There were 15 shooters on the line. We were down at the targets and heard a shot fired. One of the shooters had left the line with his bolt in the rifle and a round in the chamber. These rifles have extremely light triggers. Apparently just the motion of walking a few steps was enough to cause the trigger to function and the rifle to discharge. He was about 25 feet behind the line and the rifle discharged. He was surrounded by people in every direction. Fortunately, he had the rifle pointed upward when it discharged, but it is possible that at some point in removing the rifle from the bench and walking down the slope from the benches he might have had the rifle pointed at someone. I have worked these matches for years, and this is the first incident. I think everyone concerned had become complacent. The guy running the line went through the motions of giving the command to remove bolts, but did not thorougly check everyone. It was fortunate there was not a tradegy.

Note that Benchrest does not rely on ECIs,Empty Chamber Indicators) to indicate a safe rifle, preferring to remove the bolts instead. Doing so makes the rifle 100% safe,there is no way to fire a round without a deliberate effort to do so) provided the practice is consistently followed. Unfortunately, the shooter, his neighbors, and the Line Officer all failed to ensure the rifle was safe before people went downrange.

Let's think and practice safety out on the firing line. After all, the life you save could be your own.

 

[Asa_Yam]

And a follow-up from the Line Officer:

This is what happend, I know since I was the chief range officer. We have allowed in the past to let competitors leave the line if the competitor was finished firing on either side of them. The gentleman that fired the round had finished shooting got up and left the line. Unknown and unseen by the range officer at the time with the bolt in the rifle and a round chambered.
The gentleman was not surrouned by people but was walking behind our trailers with one other person.
This time forward no one will be allowed to leave the bench until cease fire and the range officer has inspected each rifle. Sorry for the inconvience but I and maybe you cannot live without this mandatory directive.

Think safety, and be safe, people! Let's think and practice safety out on the firing line. After all, the life you save could be your own. Bypass, circumvent, or ignore safety procedures, and you too can have an accident with an "unloaded" rifle.

 

[Forum Boss]

Asa,

Good post. I agree that one can not make a line too safe. I prefer the "bolt removed" rule, but with some semi-autos that is difficult to do. And you'd be amazed, it seems at every public range I go to there is a guy with a new rifle who doesn't even know how to remove his bolt.

In that situation I prefer the "stack 'em and rack 'em" approach, meaning that during a cease fire, all bolts are opened, rifles are removed from the benches and stacked muzzle up in racks. Of course you still have to teach people how to handle their gun,s) while moving them from the firing line to the rack.

 

[dreever]

At our range during our matches, after the cease fire is given and the order to remove bolts is given we order all rifles removed from the bench before sending the target crew down range.
Equipment may be set up on the bench, but no rifles till the ok is given AFTER the target crew has returned and the flashing light has been turned off.
We have a series of red flashing lights spaced across the range in front of the firing line with a very audible,nasty sounding) buzzer that goes off to signal it's time to set targets which can be heard anywhere on the club grounds. It is ALWAYS mandatory for anyone using the range to use the light and buzzer system whenever anyone is going downrange even if no one else is on the club grounds at the time.

Conversely,at every IBS Score benchrest match I've attended the shooter is allowed to set up the rifle with bolt out even while the target crew is downrange. It's a little strange to see twenty guys looking through their rifles scopes while the target crew is down there in the crosshairs. Like I said this is the norm for IBS score matches. Not the best system, but they've been doing it for years, and I doubt if they'll change their policy.

Danny

 

[Asa_Yam]

Final clarification, from another source:

...the gentleman was at his bench and remained at the bench until the cease fire command--he was obtaining help on where his last shot had gone. For what ever reason he got up from the bench and left the line with the bolt in the rifle AFTER the cease fire command and walked down the road to his loading area,almost 100 yards from the firing line). The rifle DID NOT GO OFF FROM BERING JIGGLED WHILE WALKING. Another competitor noticed that he had his bolt in and told him. He pointed the rifle in the air and opened the bolt and that is when it went off.

This does in no way diminish what happened. It was a very sad situation from which there needs to be learning and more attention. Competitors should be required to sit at the bench until the relay is finished,that would not have helped in this case as he did sit at bench until cease fire). The range officer and each competitor should check for bolts out BEFORE the command for target crew to go down range is given.

Safety rules are there to protect you. Ignore them at your own peril.

 

[chuckw2]

Asa,
Thanks for the post. I was at a range several years ago when something very similar happened. The bullet went into the wall of the scoring shed. Fortunately nobody was hurt. The gentleman who let the round lose was a very experienced shooter and to my knowledge has never shot again. The hole is still there, I look at it every time I shoot at this particular range.

At my home club we go overboard on safety, you have to.


Chuck

 

[StephenPerry]

Asa
I agree 100% with your statements. I run NBRSA & IBS Shoots at San Gabriel. My RO calls cease fire, bolts out, step behind the yellow line then the line is visually checked. But after reading what happened I am going to start something new. After step behind the line I am going to have the shooters on bench 1 and 20 walk to the RO checking for bolts out. I don't need the NBRSA or IBS telling me how to conduct safety rules. Didn't seem to work at that IBS Shoot.
Thanks Asa for making Ranges aware of safety shortcomings at some Ranges.
Stephen Perry

 

[WayneShaw]

This sure has been an eye-opener. It just goes to show that even experienced shooters can have a "senior moment", or just be thinking about who bad they just shot, and get up with the bolt still in. It could happen to anyone. So I hope shooters don't become offended when the RO asks certain things from now on to prevent mishaps. Things will change from now on at a lot of ranges.

 

[StephenPerry]

Danny
Your removing guns from the benches is a good policy. But this a Range policy. At both NBRSA & IBS Shoots guns are allowed to stay on the benches. I would have the guns left on the bench at least I know what I am dealing with. As Shoot Director safety is policy number 1. It disturbs me that some high up have tried to compromise the firing by saying it only happened after the cease fire and the shooter stayed at his bench until told he could leave. That is a minor point the firing occured because a shooter was allowed to leave his bench with his bolt in period. It only takes one death to end a benchrest program.
When safety becomes a ho hum subject to some shooters the Shoot Director needs to pull things together. I do this by writing Standard Operating Procedures for my shooters. I do this once a year. No accidents in my 13 years at San Gabriel. Just the way I like it.
Stephen Perry

 

[leelee]

I can only speak as a NRA RCO and have no experence of bench rest shooting but any weapon with a live round left in the chamber is un safe as the incedent proves, so maybe its time for breech flags when chambers have been proved clear?

 

[StephenPerry]

Leelee
The flag idea has been discussed and pitched. BR is safe the way it is done. This one incident couldn't have been stopped with a flag. Leaving the bench without a bolts out inspection is haphazard on the Ranges part and the Shooter should have been DQ'd and sent packing.
Stephen Perry