With bow season getting ready to open, a reminder to be careful...

[KahrMan]

Kelso man killed in 'freak' bow-hunting accident

Kelso man killed in 'freak' bow-hunting accident

A 50-year-old Kelso man was killed Friday morning while bow-hunting near Toutle in what authorities are calling "a freak accident."

According to Cowlitz County Sheriff's Capt. Corey Huffine, Benny White and his hunting partner, a 31-year-old Rainier man, left their pickup truck after spotting an elk about three miles east of Toutle, near the old Green Mountain mill site.

"The victim was hunting with a crossbow, which is allowed because he's disabled," Huffine said. "His partner was in back of him with his compound bow, and he had the bow in position."

The victim apparently stopped abruptly and the second hunter ran into him, his arrow piercing White "in the torso," Cowlitz County Coroner Tim Davidson said Friday afternoon.

"He had not fired his bow," Huffine said. "It was just a freak accident."

The younger man drove White to the 1500 block of South Toutle Road, where aid crews responded. Rescue personnel performed CPR and used a defibrilator as they tried to save White, a woman who lives nearby said.

White was pronounced dead at the scene, alongside South Toutle Road, said Davidson, who conducted an autopsy Thursday night.

According to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, White's death is the second archery fatality in the state. The first death — in 1995 — also occurred in Cowlitz County, according to the agency, which has tracked hunting injuries and fatalities since the 1970s.

Only 10 of the 767 hunting injuries on record were caused by archery equipment, said DFW hunter education coordinator Mik Mikitik. Most of the injuries were linked to shotguns, he said.

In the Dec. 13, 1995, accident in northwestern Cowlitz County, 54-year-old Theron Ticknor of Centralia died after being hit by an arrow shot by a member of another hunting party.

Bow hunting need not be dangerous, Mikitik said.

In hunter safety classes, archers are taught that "you never have a nocked arrow unless you're ready to shoot," he said.

Most injuries to archers are self-inflicted, Mikitik added. "People are basically dealing with surgical steel."

[Guest GunTroll]

Crazy. I'd also say "freak" accident. How bad the living guy must feel. One could only imagine.

[Punisher84]

That's not a freak accident. That's bad safety skills. His buddy is walking behind him, that close, with an arrow at the ready? That's just stupid.

[Guest KimberChick]

That's not a freak accident. That's bad safety skills. His buddy is walking behind him, that close, with an arrow at the ready? That's just stupid.

^This. he probably always did things this way and it finally bit him in the ass.

[Guest BEARMAN]

That's not a freak accident. That's bad safety skills. His buddy is walking behind him, that close, with an arrow at the ready? That's just stupid.

I second that....It was akin to walking next to other hunters with your safety off of a loaded rifle.

SAFETY...SAFETY...SAFETY...IT CANNOT BE STRESSED ENOUGH!

[Chris]

My firearms instructors taught me that there is no such thing as an accidental discharge... only negligent discharges. Same thing applies to bows. These are deadly weapons and safety must be of paramount importance.

[LagerHead]

I second that....It was akin to walking next to other hunters with your safety off of a loaded rifle.

SAFETY...SAFETY...SAFETY...IT CANNOT BE STRESSED ENOUGH!

^^^Nailed it.

[Guest GunTroll]

I still say freak. Smart, he probably wasn't. Negligent, sure. But to get it deep enough and in the right spot (where ever that was) is freakish. No one here has never pulled a bone head move at least once right? If you haven't then by all means go get yourself a stone.

[Punisher84]

I still say freak. Smart, he probably wasn't. Negligent, sure. But to get it deep enough and in the right spot (where ever that was) is freakish. No one here has never pulled a bone head move at least once right? If you haven't then by all means go get yourself a stone.

My mistakes never killed anyone or even got them hurt. Little difference there. He was negligent and killed his friend. Period. Its basic hunters safety. Its no more freak then carrying a loaded rifle over a fence with the safety off and your finger on the trigger.

[Guest GunTroll]

My mistakes never killed anyone or even got them hurt. Little difference there. He was negligent and killed his friend. Period. Its basic hunters safety. Its no more freak then carrying a loaded rifle over a fence with the safety off and your finger on the trigger.

Yet.

You ever hunt out west? You keep bringing up firearms. Why? This was a bow or to be more specific arrow accident. Watch any out west hunting type shows long enough and you'll see it's quite common to have your arrow ready. Hunting out west is dangerous. Period. Besides most hunting is done from the ground not a tree stand where you can be "safe" while hanging from a tree with your weapon(s) on "safe" .Your on foot and stalking. Perhaps he and his buddy were very close to the end of there stalk on their prey when this happened. The story did not elaborate on that. Hell the game could have been right over a rise and thats why the victim stopped abruptly. Ever think of that? Again he was at fault for the death but it is a bit of one of those random freak acts. Go condemn someone who deserves it. No one but the two people who were there can judge and I guess truly only one now. STAY SAFE now!

[Punisher84]

Yet.

You ever hunt out west? You keep bringing up firearms. Why? This was a bow or to be more specific arrow accident. Watch any out west hunting type shows long enough and you'll see it's quite common to have your arrow ready. Hunting out west is dangerous. Period. Besides most hunting is done from the ground not a tree stand where you can be "safe" while hanging from a tree with your weapon(s) on "safe" .Your on foot and stalking. Perhaps he and his buddy were very close to the end of there stalk on their prey when this happened. The story did not elaborate on that. Hell the game could have been right over a rise and thats why the victim stopped abruptly. Ever think of that? Again he was at fault for the death but it is a bit of one of those random freak acts. Go condemn someone who deserves it. No one but the two people who were there can judge and I guess truly only one now. STAY SAFE now!

Allright calm down. No need in breaking your neck falling off the horse. I'm not condemning the guy, I'm sure he feels bad and I'm not saying he should be charged or anything, but he was negligent. I bring up firearms because it's called a "comparison". My Uncle has bow hunted pretty much exclusively for decades with his friends and they've never had an accident like this. I wonder why. The guy was negligent and he killed his friend. Same way if a soldier or SWAT member killed one of their guys breaching a door in a line. If you're doing what you're supposed to do, everyone goes home.

[Guest GunTroll]

Fine. My neck hurts. Stay on top of yours. Gee, comparision.......thanks.

[Punisher84]

Fine. My neck hurts. Stay on top of yours. Gee, comparision.......thanks.

I also only brought up guns once for what it's worth.

I guess I just don't see why you're so quick to defend him is all. I just can't see being in that position around someone else. Again, not condemning the guy to Hell or anything, I just think it was an accident of negligence, not freak. That may just be a difference of semantics though. To me freak would be my steering wheel popping off with great force and crushing my skull in or something.

[Guest GunTroll]

Your freak accident would in deed be freaky. Sounds a bit like final destination type freakness.

And for sticking up for him, naw, just putting myself in his shoes. I feel bad for the guy. And I bet he feels bad about his decisions. He doesn't need people far away in TN to judge him now. We weren't there and don't know what went down exactly. Not to mention todays bright bunch of reporters out there with their hidden anti hunting agenda and general lack of knowledge about anything "manly". IE, Glock revolver and the such.

I see where your coming from though. Point made.

[Punisher84]

Your freak accident would in deed be freaky. Sounds a bit like final destination type freakness.

And for sticking up for him, naw, just putting myself in his shoes. I feel bad for the guy. And I bet he feels bad about his decisions. He doesn't need people far away in TN to judge him now. We weren't there and don't know what went down exactly. Not to mention todays bright bunch of reporters out there with their hidden anti hunting agenda and general lack of knowledge about anything "manly". IE, Glock revolver and the such.

I see where your coming from though. Point made.

I can definitely dig that. Likewise.

[StPatrick]

The accident is about as unlikely as...well shoot, it's only happened once, so the poor man who was stabbed won a very bad lottery. Hopefully, archers around the country will remember to never point a loaded weapon at anything they don't wish to destroy, and learn that a nocked arrow makes a bow a loaded weapon. It's kind of counter-intuitive, since you don't think of a bow as loaded until it's drawn, but sadly, these guys have proven (in the most tragic way possible) that carrying a loaded bow pointing at your buddy is the same as sweeping him with the muzzle of your rifle. It's a situation where nothing good can happen, but for that once in million occurrence, the worst is possible.

Had the bow been pointing 45 degrees to either side, there would have been a muffled "s##t...sorry man" and both men walk away. Thanks for the post - I had never considered an undrawn bow loaded, and will going forward.