A Florida father accidentally shot both his wife and 4-year-old daughter while preparing a handgun for a trip to the shooting range, authorities said.
The frightening incident happened around 9:50 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 19, at a home on Boxelder Street in Deltona, about 30 miles northeast of Orlando.
According to the Volusia Sheriff’s Office, the man called 911 and reported that his handgun had accidentally discharged inside the home.
When deputies arrived, they found the father outside carrying his injured 4-year-old daughter.
The little girl had suffered wounds to her chest and arm, while her mother was found inside the home holding a towel over a gunshot wound to her leg.
Both victims were conscious and alert when first responders arrived.
Deputies applied tourniquets to both the mother and daughter and placed a chest seal on the child before emergency medical crews took over.
The girl was airlifted to Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, while her mother was transported to HCA Florida Lake Monroe Hospital.
Authorities have not publicly released updated details about their conditions.
The father told investigators he had been getting ready to leave for a shooting range and was attempting to clear the firearm when it discharged.
One bullet struck both his wife and daughter, according to investigators.
After examining the scene and evidence, the sheriff’s office said the facts gathered so far support the father’s account that the shooting was accidental.
No criminal charges had been filed as of Sunday, although authorities said the incident remained under investigation.
The shooting stunned neighbors in the normally quiet Deltona community.
“It’s gut-wrenching,” longtime resident Patrick Juliano told WESH. “It’s just something that you pray never happens, but it happened.”
The case is another painful reminder of how quickly a firearm-handling mistake can turn into a family emergency.
For this family, what was supposed to be an ordinary Saturday morning and a trip to the shooting range instead ended with a mother and her young daughter being rushed to hospitals after a single accidental gunshot.
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