Keep safety in mind, when storing firearms

Editorial

Members of the Courier Sentinel editorial board include publisher Carol O’Leary, general manager Kris O’Leary and Star News editor Brian Wilson.

According to ammunition industry experts, about 9 billion rounds of ammunition were produced in the United States in 2020. That amount is expected to increase, because of rising consumer demand.

While much of this ammunition is used in hunting, range shooting, sporting clays and other activities, a large amount is simply stored for future use. Shooting sports enthusiasts are similar to other consumers and react to perceived shortages in the supply chain by purchasing additional ammunition, so that they have it when it is needed.

The same type of thinking that led to the toilet paper shortages across the country last year, is driving shortages of popular types of ammunition.

If properly stored, ammunition can have a long shelf life. The leading ammunition manufacturer, Federal, promises a 10-year shelf life for their ammunition. Much as with everything with firearms, the proper storage of ammunition can be the difference between a safe hobby and an unintended tragedy.

But for luck, and the efforts of emergency responders and medical personnel, such a tragedy nearly occurred this winter, when Cornell firefighter Justin Fredrickson was shot, when a loaded firearm suddenly discharged during a structure fire.

According to the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers Institute, when ammunition is heated, such as during a house fire, it has a chance to explode. When stored in their paperboard boxes that they are sold in, the ammunition will typically do little damage, because the force of the explosion is unfocused.

If stored in a metal container, there is a greater chance that the exploding ammunition could create shrapnel, which has the potential for causing injury. The most risk is if firearms are stored loaded. As a loaded firearm is heated, the firearm can discharge with the force as if it had been intentionally fired.

According to Fire Engineering magazine, even unexploded ammunition that has been heated, is potentially unstable, and should be handled with extreme care and disposed of by qualified individuals.

Firearms experts suggest homeowners keep their ammunition stored in cool, dark and locked locations in their home. If someone has a large amount of ammunition or the equipment and material to produce their own ammunition, they should make this known to local emergency responders and its general location in the home.

This is similar to how businesses inform firefighters about the presence of potentially hazardous materials in workplaces. Doing so allows the firefighters to better respond, to ensure the safety of firefighting crews.

Beyond the threat from exploded ammunition in fires, gun owners should also take care to properly store ammunition out of reach of children and pets. Ammunition is a choking hazard and the chemicals used in production of ammunition can cause illness, if ingested.

Before using any ammunition, be sure to inspect it for signs of physical damage. This includes corrosion, significant discoloration, dents and heavy scratches. Never use a cartridge or shotgun shell that shows signs of swelling, splits or just “feels different” from the rest.

Common sense measures in how ammunition is stored, can help keep tragedies from happening.