It’s obvious that something went terribly wrong when three tourists were injured during a recent mock gun battle in Hill City that became all to real. The tourists were shot by a member of the Dakota Wild Bunch Reenactors using a gun containing live rounds instead of blank cartridges.Rico says the article carried the typical admonition that "this material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed", which, given that it was posted on the internet, fer crissakes, only makes him laugh, as he did all those things to it...
Fortunately, none of the resulting injuries were life-threatening, but that doesn’t lessen the horror and pain experienced by those who sustained injuries, as well fear and confusion among the many witnesses. It’s even more disturbing to think someone might have been killed.
The Dakota Wild Bunch has been staging Old West shootouts in downtown Hill City for about five years.
The 17 June incident that went terribly awry is still under investigation, but one law enforcement official said proper safety procedures apparently weren’t followed: “It’s obvious at this point that his weapon wasn’t checked before this occurred", said Lieutenant Marty Graves, an investigator for the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office.
Arizona re-enactor John Larkin called the incident appalling, and said there’s no question safety procedures weren’t followed. Larkin and other re-enactors are upset that the incident has cast their activities in such a negative light, when participants pride themselves on safety and historical accuracy.
Numerous re-enactments occur each week throughout the United States, including Old West shootouts and Civil War reenactments.
It’s not unusual for injuries to occur, by accident or neglect, to be followed by a public outcry to make sure it doesn’t happen again. One sure way to accomplish that would be to eliminate mock gun battles in Hill City and elsewhere. But that would be a disservice to the audiences that enjoy such events and to the people who stage them using proper safety procedures.
The Wild Bunch may have trouble finding work after this incident, but other reenactors should not be penalized for one group’s sloppy safety procedures, and one irresponsible group shouldn’t put those who are responsible out of business. Those who agree can still see mock shootouts in Deadwood. Whether such shootouts will resume in Hill City is a decision its residents and community leaders will have to carefully consider.
While other groups may believe the Wild Bunch was careless, the accidental shooting does provide an opportunity for all reenacting groups to review their own procedures and make any safety changes necessary. The Hill City incident could be seen as a welcome opportunity.
10 July 2011
Good admonition
Rico says no, that's 'admonition', not 'ammunition', and this article (courtesy of his cowboy friend Bad Blake) from the Rapid City Journal is why:
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