A Specialist assigned to Fort Riley, Kansas, died in a privately owned weapons (POW) mishap 5 April 2021 in Manhattan, Kansas, at 1330 local. The Soldier was cleaning his POW when he unintentionally discharged a round that struck him in the upper abdomen. During transport to the local hospital, the Soldier died due to his injuries. At this time, it is unknown if alcohol was involved. The mishap is under investigation.

Since FY16, the Army has lost an average of four Soldiers a year to POW mishaps. This tragedy was the third fatal POW fatality of FY21.

You can manage your risk with privately owned weapons if you always THINK weapons safety!

Treat every weapon as if it is loaded.
Handle every weapon with care.
Identify the target before you fire.
Never point the muzzle at anything you don’t intend to shoot.
Keep the weapon on safe and your finger off the trigger until you intend to fire.

The USACRC website contains numerous resources to address POW safety:https://safety.army.mil/OFF-DUTY/Privately-Owned-Weapons

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