Self-Inflicted GSW During AFHF
31-Jan-10 – 23:55 by ToddGDuring the Aim Fast, Hit Fast class I was teaching in Memphis this weekend, a student shot himself in the leg while holstering his pistol.
I will not get into details — or answer questions — about the shooter’s identity, make and model of gun, etc. However, the incident and the class’s handling of it are worth relaying as it may hopefully be instructional for others.
Before the first shot is ever fired in any AFHF class, an emergency response plan is devised and then communicated to the students. In this class, two students identified themselves as having training/experience dealing with gunshot wounds. They were then designated the first responders. I described where I keep my IFAK (attached to the shoulder strap of my range bag) so anyone in the class could easily locate it and bring it to me. The range owner confirmed that the fastest emergency services response was via 9-1-1 and all the students were told calling 9-1-1 was the responsibility of anyone who was not immediately involved in treating the injury.
I’ve given that speech dozens of times and watched hundreds of students nod in the same way you nod at the flight attendant while she explains how the oxygen mask works when the plane loses cabin pressure.
But Sunday morning, we lost cabin pressure.
I was standing about five feet behind and to the right of the student when it happened. The class was shooting a drill that involved multiple draws from the holster. In the middle of the drill while everyone else was still shooting, the student turned towards me and very simply said, “I just shot myself.” He was perfectly calm. The slide on his pistol was locked back and just as he finished speaking he dropped it on the ground.
Immediately I called a cease fire and told the student to lie down. I pointed to another nearby student and instructed her to call 9-1-1. The two previously designated “first responders” immediately appeared and another student brought over my IFAK. Soon both of the first responders’ personal trauma kits were also in their hands.
Within a matter of seconds they had cut away his pant leg and exposed the wounds. The bullet had entered just below the knee, traveled through the calf muscle, and exited just above the ankle. Pressure bandages were applied to both wounds. The student remained lucid and even made some jokes. He calmly explained that he’d had his finger on the trigger as he holstered the gun.
The police and then an ambulance arrived and the student was taken to the hospital. Approximately two hours later, after x-rays and examinations, he was released and is expected to make a complete recovery.
After the police cleared the area and allowed us back onto the range, the rest of the class continued as planned.
The major lessons to be learned from this:
- Accidents can happen to anyone at any time. This was not the student’s first formal training class and he had also participated in IDPA matches. He had drawn and reholstered his pistol probably a hundred times so far during AFHF this weekend alone. But a moment of inattention was all it took for a bullet to make two new holes in his body.
- Make a plan before an accident occurs and communicate that plan to everyone. Literally less than 30 seconds passed between when the student shot himself and two trained people were attending to the wounds. There was no panic, there was no standing around trying to figure out who was going to do what. We had a plan, everyone knew the plan, everyone followed the plan.
- If you are on the range, you should have a GSW kit with you. Even if you do not know how to use it — in which case you should learn — at least have the kit in case someone else has the know-how but not the supplies. An IFAK should be part of every shooter’s range kit.
- Never be in a rush to holster your pistol. We all know it, we say it, we teach it. Not all of us do it.
I would like to commend all of the students in the class — especially our two medical responders — for their mature, professional, coolheaded behavior on the range today; and, the great staff at the range for their role in assisting with the student’s well being, the police investigation, and the aftermath.
And of course above all else, I hope the student has a swift and easy recovery.
Train hard & stay safe! ToddG
60 Responses to “Self-Inflicted GSW During AFHF”
Great post. thanks for the reminders.
By practicalgunreview on Feb 1, 2010
Passing the message on…
By Shenaniguns on Feb 1, 2010
Thank you for this post.
Shootin’ Buddy gave me a range bag for Christmas the year before last. I opened it to find that it already had a couple of pressure dressings packed inside. Now that’s thoughtful.
By Tam on Feb 1, 2010
“Train hard & stay safe!”
You practice what you preach. You and your students were alert, aware and prepared. Nice Job!
By steve on Feb 1, 2010
If nothing else this serves as a reminder that crap happens, and it can happen to us. Familiarity breeds contempt, and sometimes we can all get too familiar with being on the range doing something that most of us enjoy doing.
I’m glad everybody is OK.
By JW777 on Feb 1, 2010
I’m new to shooting sports, and realize that this deserves every bit as much preperation as aviation and racing do.
Where do I find more info on the IFAC kit? I very much like having a medical kit on the range bag.
By Andy on Feb 1, 2010
Andy — Last year, we asked Tactical Medical Solutions to produce its excellent Operator IFAK in a more obvious color. They’ve now begun shipping red IFAKs. I keep one on my range bag and actually sent one to every one of my 2009 class hosts as Christmas gifts. Everyone should have an IFAK on their range bag in my opinion.
By ToddG on Feb 1, 2010
Very cool. I will have one. Thanks for the link.
By Andy on Feb 1, 2010
Thanks Todd for your post. It reinforces my decision to take a First Medical Responder course shortly after getting my NRA certification.
I ended up putting together my own kit based on advice from a trauma surgeon acquaintance with military experience. His view is, if you keep the patient breathing and stop the blood flow you will have done 90% of what it takes to survive a GSW and will have avoided most of the harm frequently done. YMMV
By HowardCohodas on Feb 1, 2010
That’s why my carry gun is hammer-fired with external safety. Thumb is always on the hammer when holstering and the gun cannot be holstered with safety off.
I do have striker-fired guns with no external safety for matches. I watch when I holster (to make sure nothing would catch the trigger) with a much slower motion and trigger finger on frame of course.
I still think those striker-fired pistols with so called double action only trigger (but feels and works just like a slight heavier single action pull) are quite dangerous for duty use.
By xw on Feb 1, 2010
There is something to be said for DA/DAO hammer-fired guns where you can cover the hammer as you reholster. It seems the majority of pistol training accidents happen when reholstering.
I carry appendix carry quite often and I have to admit that I have much more peace of mind doing so with an LEM HK or DAK Sig than I do with an M&P or Glock.
Also, the need for basic medical knowledge involving GSW treatment cannot be overstated. It’s worth mentioning that the TMS link you provided doesn’t just sell kit, but also has a very informative blog.
By Justin on Feb 1, 2010
To counter the notion of hammer-as-panacea, I’d like to note that the slang term “racing stripe” became common currency when the S&W Model 10 was still the most common LE sidearm in the land by a crushing margin…
By Tam on Feb 1, 2010
God Speed!
By gtmtnbiker98 on Feb 1, 2010
Thanks for posting this Todd, and get well soon to your student.
By Greg on Feb 1, 2010
Great post and an excellent reminder to talk safety before the shooting begins on any range. Wish a speedy recovery for your student.
By Lance on Feb 1, 2010
We just had a two day study group gathering and the first thing we did on day 1 after the safety brief was have a former corpsman and EMT give a mini-seminar for treatment of gunshot wounds. We had numerous trauma kits on site and a plan to deal with it.
Glad to hear everybody responded as they should have.
By The_Katar on Feb 1, 2010
Good to hear it went as well as any shooting could.
What IFAK components were most useful? What stuff do you and the responders wish you had (as far as first aid components, like hemostats or different pressure dressings)?
By Mort on Feb 1, 2010
That’s an eye opener. I keep a boo-boo kit in the car and I know I *should* have a GSW kit…but I’ve been putting it off. This seems too close to home to ignore.
By subzero on Feb 1, 2010
UPDATE: The student called me this morning and reported that he is already up and walking around without crutches. He hasn’t needed any pain medication. He said it hurts (“like a really bad cramp”) but otherwise all is well.
On a personal note, I want to thank the readers here at pistol-training.com and other sites that have picked up this story. So far, I haven’t seen a single “OMG stoopid!” type comment. It’s heartening to see so many experienced shooters realize, “crap, that could have been me!” rather than the typical Internet Conventional Wisdom that demonizes every AD as something only the unwashed would experience.
This student is now a walking, talking billboard for trigger finger discipline. I told him he’s welcome to re-take the class any time.
By ToddG on Feb 1, 2010
Handling firearms is just like handling snakes… the moment you disrespect them, they can bite you. This is a reminder of that.
We are glad the student will make a full recovery.
By Ogre on Feb 1, 2010
Do you mind if this cautionary tale was reposted elswhere? Hopefully more shooters will see how swiftly and effectively this was handeled and aspire to mimick those precautions.
By Shawn.L on Feb 1, 2010
I like the Operator IFAK carry-along practice. But I’m wondering if there are some web sites/areas you can point to for some cursory tips on effectively using the kit. I’m not advocating medical training via the web. Just some starting points to get us introduced to proper techniques.
By Blurboy on Feb 1, 2010
Okay . . . an addendum and apology. The TMS site has some excellent starting points, as mentioned above. I’ll read more before I post next time!
By Blurboy on Feb 1, 2010
At one class I took, the instructor had us holster very slowly, with two or three breaths at each stage moving back to the holster. The rationale was that going back in the holster slowly is safer, and also in case you happened to need the gun again due to the bad guy popping back up or another one showing up, it would be preferable for it to still be in your hand.
I’ve kept the habit up, and I cringe when I see other people holster super fast after shooting.
For handguns with a grip safety(XD or 1911) I like to always release the grip safety to the non-firing position while holstering by putting my thumb on the back of the slide (which by the way also helps verify that the gun is still in battery while in the holster).
By jumpthestack on Feb 1, 2010
Good to hear he is doing well.
On the issue of holstering speed, I have noticed that a heavy dry-fire routine adversely affects my holstering speed. In an effort to get more practice in, I will holster the gun faster. It is only incrementally faster, but it still makes me uncomfortable when I catch myself. Something to watch for if you follow a heavy dry-fire routine.
By joshs on Feb 1, 2010
I reholster very slowly, 4 fingers cocked out at an angle away from the pistol, not touching the pistol with only the thumb and palm gripping it.
By Bax on Feb 2, 2010
The most important thing you can do is reholster deliberately with attention to what you are doing, especially if you are using a weapon with a light trigger and no manual safeties. Remember: There’s never any prize for being the first guy back in the holster.
By JW777 on Feb 2, 2010
Thanks for the story, best wishes to the student.
I ordered the red IFAK kit as soon as I found the link.
By Barnaby on Feb 2, 2010
It could happen to any of us….
By Regularguy on Feb 2, 2010
Excellent post and the second such incident I’ve heard involving knowledgeable shooters *this month*. The other was also local (yes, I realize this wasn’t really local, but Todd’s local so I’m counting it anyway).
Amusingly, at your last “back to basics” Practice Session, a few of us were comparing IFAKs while the other relay was up. Glad we didn’t need them.
Finally — while you’re not going to learn medical care from a Power Point, there’s a lot of good learning material here, for those who were asking for more background:
http://www.acep.org/acepmembership.aspx?id=31674
By Noveske FTW on Feb 2, 2010
What’s an IFAK?
By Brian on Feb 2, 2010
thanks god, and your prep plan, Im getting one of those IFAK for sure,
thanks for sharing the experience, fast recovery to your student.
best regards.
By svega on Feb 2, 2010
RE:Brian
http://www.armyproperty.com/Resources/NSN-Listings/IFAK.htm
IFAK, Unsure which he means in this case, Individual or Improved.
By BwarRoo on Feb 3, 2010
Well since no one else has said it, “This thread is useless without pics”. And I don’t mean this as a joke actually. I think that if there are any pics that show what the wound looked like, how it was treated and such, it would also serve as a great training tool for everyone who wants to further their knowledge about this kind of thing.
Beyond that, I’m glad to hear that the student is up and on the road to recovery, and I’m also glad to know he’s welcome back to your class. Accidents happen, and can happen to anyone. If a donation page were setup for this person to take another class with you I’d throw in some money. I imagine he’s going to have some personal demons to overcome once he heads back to the range.
By Rob Engh on Feb 3, 2010
IFAK .. Improved First Aid Kit? Least thats what google tells me.
By Barnaby on Feb 3, 2010
Thanks for the link Noveske FTW
By Greg on Feb 3, 2010
Thanks for posting the info. I’m going to a class next week (F.A.S.T Academy w/Shannon Smith) and this was a wake up call for me.
Thanks again!
By George on Feb 3, 2010
IFAK is usually “Individual First Aid Kit” but I’ve also seen “Infantry First Aid Kit” and other variations.
Concept is that each person carries the necessities in an easy to locate, compact and consistently placed/designed carrier so you can apply aid to your buddy without using your own (or the medic’s) supplies, but so you don’t have to go digging through his custom med bag to find the tourniquet when you need it.
By Noveske FTW on Feb 3, 2010
The demeanor and maturity of the self-shot student goes a long way, too. Shock may have had a part in it, but I suspect having the discussion beforehand helped settle him, with the realization that the situation was under control. I’d be very interested to hear his thoughts on the incident.
I’m glad he’s doing well.
By Antibubba on Feb 3, 2010
As one of my Depts firearms instructors my biggest fear is an officer being shot on the range. Time and time again officers are told not to speed re holster. This just reminds me to be even more vigilant about finger placement and the need to not speed re-holster. Your article also shows the value of having a plan of action ahead of time. I hope all works out well for your student and you.
By Paul on Feb 3, 2010
There is no Tactical Reason why anyone needs a super fast reholster. I had to laugh at the new Blackhawk catalog that shows Body Armor that can be removed in 2 seconds flat. Since when will I ever need to doff my armor as fast as possible?
Getting the Armor On, or the Gun up on to Target is where I want the speed. After the situation is over, where is the harm in taking a little bit of time?
By Ogre on Feb 4, 2010
Not to get too far off topic, but for Ogre: There are circumstances where rapid removal of armor can be very important, but they don’t apply to most people.
If you suddenly find yourself submerged, having a pull-tab to remove 30 lbs of gear could seem pretty worthwhile. To a lesser extent, nondestructive rapid removal can be useful if emergent medical care is needed.
Back on topic: I second the “it would be really interesting to hear what the student has to say about it”, with any identifying info removed, of course.
By Noveske FTW on Feb 4, 2010
” Since when will I ever need to doff my armor as fast as possible?”
If you’re ever on fire…
;o)
By Navigating Collapse on Feb 4, 2010
Back on-topic: Todd, thanks for posting this. It’s a good example that even a well-trained, competent shooter can have a slip. Mistakes happen, how we react and deal with those mistakes ultimately determine the cost.
By Navigating Collapse on Feb 4, 2010
And I now have a sympathetic injury. Just got home from the hospital, tore my calf muscle at work tonight. leg is about twice the size. No where near as bad as a GSW, but man it hurts.
By Rob Engh on Feb 4, 2010
When it comes to gun related issues, I take pride in the fact that… well, that I have no pride.
That being the case, I’ll ask the stupid questions.
I’ve figured out that GSW means “Gun Shot Wound,” but I have no idea what an “IFAC” is. Could you please enlighten me?
By Keith Walker on Feb 4, 2010
Individual (or Improved) First Aid Kit, most commonly.
By Noveske FTW on Feb 4, 2010
RE: Ogre
“There is no Tactical Reason why anyone needs a super fast reholster”
I beg to differ. As a cop there are times when I need to get my piece in the holster and grab another tool – an intermediate weapon, handcuffs, going to work with my hands, etc.
That being said, holstering rapidly and safely should not be a priority after the trigger has been pulled a few times, I agree.
However “never say never”
By Aaron on Feb 4, 2010
Every time I go to practice, be it for IDPA, defensive practice, or just fun, I know if I make a mistake I can shoot myself. All it takes is for one to let their mind wander.
Never have had it happen but as they say, familiarity breeds contempt.
By Paul on Feb 8, 2010
Been there done that — when I was 14. 22 LR single action Colt reproduction coming out of a holster. Finger slipped on the hammer –the bullet went 11″ through my leg, bouncing off bone, nicking a nerve, slicing an artery, lodging nea my ankle. Long story. Your student was very lucky to be walking out the same day. I am lucky just to be alive.
I only took up pistol shooting again 35 yrs later, and would enjoy competitive shooting, except for being mental about the holster part.
By RP on Feb 9, 2010
I do not think its fair not to tell us the type of action it was. Was it a gun with SA, DAO, or DA/SA? What condition was the gun in–cocked or not, safety or not?
This is a great lesson in which actions are less forgiving for reholstering IF you leave that finger in the trigger. So what action was it? Was there an external hammer? Was there an external safety?
In other words how badly did the guy screw up other than leaving the finger in the trigger guard while reholstering.
I dont think any manufacturer has to get it panties in a bunch because one can disclose without saying (or us knowing) which manufacturer it was. Even if it was striker fired that doesnt say much because there are many striker fired weapons out there now, in DAO, SAO, and DA/SA. We might suspect but we will never know for sure.
You did say the slide locked back so we already know if wasnt one of those mouse or 380 guns that has no lockback. . . .
By P30man on Feb 10, 2010
“To counter the notion of hammer-as-panacea, I’d like to note that the slang term “racing stripe” became common currency when the S&W Model 10 was still the most common LE sidearm in the land by a crushing margin…”
I’d like to hear more about this.
By Bax on Feb 12, 2010
Certainly a cautionary tale for those of us carrying AIWB. Ouch…
By JohnN on Feb 16, 2010
Guys, it was just pointed out to me that I had used “IFAC” instead of “IFAK” twice in the original post. Brain fade on my part. Mea culpa, and it has been fixed. Thanks to Jimmy S for the heads-up!
By ToddG on Feb 17, 2010
OK. Now since we have all the great advice, can you:
get into details — or answer questions — about the make and model of gun and holster type?
By Bay on Feb 18, 2010
Todd, First time on your site… Excellent posting and something all too often neglected.
I was once the victim of a negligent discharge at the hands of another shooter, in a situation when no first aid kit was available. As a former first responder, and my personal experience, I hate to say it but I find MAJOR fault in the IFAK that you mention and recommend.First and foremost we need to think about what we are intent on using the kit for. The kit in question is designed for single use, single wound treatment. The majority of GSW that we will encounter at a range, by the pure nature of fact, are the result of close proximity shooting, in vernacular, point blank. This means that no velocity has bled off the round. If this sounds too obvious to mention please bare with me, as it is necessary to understand the types of wounds our kits are needed to treat. This high velocity GSW will almost always produce an entrance and an exit wound, as opposed to a lower velocity wound where is no “shoot through”. Relevance? There is only ONE usable dressing in the kit, and NO surgical sponges to use in addition to it to stem blood flow ( a dressing is “non-stick” and a sponge is multiple thicknesses of gauze. In addition there are no suitable dressings for thoractic wounds of the “sucking” variety. These wounds are life threatening as they allow air into the chest cavity, thereby prohibiting the diaphragm’s function of inflating the lungs. And again, minimum of two of these special purpose dressings are necessary for the obvious risk of a “shoot through injury”. And additional surgical tape and a second pair of surgical gloves are needed as in the case of a shoot through, all too often two responders are needed. In this day of life threatening blood born pathogens, I can NOT over emphasize the need of the gloves. There are people walking around carrying diseases that have not yet affected them and they, themselves are not even aware they have, so the gloves become the item of most importance, followed by some form of air barrier for thoracic wounds and doubling up on the dressings and sponges.
Sadly I am yet to find a properly outfitted individual kit anywhere, as they all are set up around “convenience and cuts” and the idea that the person next to you also has one, so the supplies are doubled. Even home and automotive as well as camping first aid kits are sorely lacking in proper supplies for any serious injuries more than 5 minutes from EMS care. With that said, I highly recommend anyone who shoots, be it at an indoor range, outdoor range, informal plinking or hunting take, not a basic first aid course but the Red Cross Advanced First Aid and Emergency Care course, as THIS is the course that will deal with the care of life threatening injuries such as gunshot wounds and penetrating thoracic wounds, of which we are the most concerned.
By ScottS on Feb 19, 2010
ScottS — No question, the IFAK is not a do-it-all kit and one of the things we saw at the Memphis class was the need to treat two wounds.
FWIW, from day one I supplemented my IFAK with a combat gauze, an extra control wrap, and a chest seal. It’s not easy getting everything to fit, but it’s doable. I also tossed the casualty card stuff to make room, since my IFAK isn’t likely to be serving duty in a mass casualty event.
By ToddG on Feb 20, 2010
If you don’t want to identify it as X brand, could you tell us if the pistol was striker fired, DA/SA, LEM/DAK, or cocked and locked type. You mentioned the importance of taking your time returning to the holster. Was that determined to be one of the causing factors? Have you done a review and/or is there anything you’ve identified as something either the training staff could do better. Was this something as simple as the student breaking one of the cardinal rules compiled with trying to reholster fast? Sadly we all learn from peoples mistakes so the more you could share the better. Thanks.
By Matt on Feb 20, 2010
Sorry, my question meant to read …is there anything you’ve identified as something either the training staff could do better OR was this something as simple as the student…
By Matt on Feb 20, 2010
Matt — Fair enough. The pistol was a striker-fired gun that had its trigger modified to be lighter than factory spec.
Short of having everyone clear their pistols after each iteration of each drill and shooting all exercises from Condition Four, there’s not much that could have been done from the instructor side to prevent this. As I said, I’d watched the student holster the gun properly multiple times and he’d holstered the gun probably hundreds of times already during the class. It was a momentary brain fade. It doesn’t say anything about the shooter other than that he’s a human being and fallible like the rest of us. I’d be more than happy to have him in class again in the future.
For future classes, the only real change I’ll be making is using this incident as an example of why we tell people not to race back to the holster…
By ToddG on Feb 20, 2010