Hunter safety in Pennsylvania is at an all-time high. In 2015, there were only 23 hunting-related shooting incidents statewide. That’s the lowest number on record, reports Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Executive Director R. Matthew Hough

Only two of the 23 incidents resulted in fatalities. One was self-inflicted, and one resulted from a shot where the victim was in the line of fire according to the data compiled on hunting-related shooting incidents. The leading causes of HRSIs were a victim being in the line of fire or unintentional discharge; each accounted for 35% of the total.

SMARTER GUNS? Safe gun handling is far more effective than any smarter gun tech in reducing hunter gun-related injuries and fatalities.

Five of the 23 incidents involved individuals with 10 or fewer years of hunting experience. No incidents involved a youth participating in PGC’s Mentored Youth Hunting Program.

Why the drop

HRSIs in Pennsylvania declined nearly 80% since hunter-education training began in 1959. The previous record-low was 27 incidents in 2013. Before that, there never had been fewer than 33 incidents reported in a year.

“If you look back at the hundreds of incidents that occurred year after year in Pennsylvania decades ago, it really is remarkable how far hunter safety has come,” says Hough. “It’s been accomplished largely through a team of hard-working volunteers dedicated to making hunting continually safer.” But he adds, “There still is work to do. Even one incident is too many.”

Required “hunter orange” has much to do with the safety trend, he says. But the hunter and trapper education and certification programs have been just as essential.

The Mentored Youth Hunting Program, which enables hunters under the age of 12 to harvest certain wildlife species if they’re accompanied by a licensed adult, continues to provide safety training. About 32,680 Mentored Youth Permits were issued in 2015. And, 38,671 students received Basic Hunter-Trapper Education certification.

“Pennsylvania has reached many safety milestones, particularly in recent years, but also over the 50-plus years since hunter-education training first began,” notes Jim Daley, a PGC commissioner and longtime hunter-education instructor. “Every student we teach becomes an ambassador for safe, responsible and ethical hunting.”

Some 2,326 volunteer instructors have played a key role. “Over time, this model has created a cultural shift among hunters – making hunting in Pennsylvania even safer.”