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Hunting accident highlights need for caution in field

Published 12:00am Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Hunting season is upon us. No matter how careful the hunter, there is always the opportunity for accidents when firearms are involved, say firearms specialists. Required hunter education classes are designed to make sure accidents are few and far between. &8220;There are three basic rules of firearm safety that they have to know and understand before they can pass,&8221; Tony Rondeau, a volunteer firearms safety instructor for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Enforcement Division, said. &8220;Treat all firearms as if they were loaded, always control the muzzle of the firearm and know the target you&8217;re shooting at and what&8217;s behind it. If you live by those three rules, there&8217;ll be no accidents.&8221; The DNR sponsors three sessions of youth firearm safety classes in Fergus Falls and Underwood via community education. Classes in Fergus Falls take place in March/April and July/August. The Underwood session is August/September. By law, Rondeau said, an individual has to be 12 years old by deer season to hunt; the average age of the class participants is 11 to 13. Since the law requires anyone born after Dec. 31, 1979, to have some kind of firearm safety instruction before they can purchase a hunting license, there are also opportunities for adults. They can sit in on the youth classes, take classes via Internet, or a home study course. The classes, Rondeau said, are based on respect and responsibility. &8220;Respect is first. Respect for wildlife and for the land. Respect for those who use the outdoors, including non-hunters. Hunters are responsible for knowing and obeying all safety rules and all the rules that apply to the wildlife they are pursuing &8230; We try to provide a heavy dose of firearm safety. They have to learn all of the parts of the gun, how to handle the different types and how they operate. They also learn by hands-on experience in an outdoor situation how to cross a fence or other obstacle. They have to learn the zones of safety, where they can safely shoot and how to safely handle a gun in a duck boat or duck blind. The list goes on and on. We offer 15 hours of classroom learning experience. They&8217;re required to go to a shooting range and shoot live rounds from the four basic shooting positions.&8221; For more information on hunter education classes, call 998-0544, Ext. 160 in Fergus Falls, or 826-6101 in Underwood.