ALBANY, GA (WALB) -
Saturday is expected to be the busiest hunting day of the year in Georgia as firearms deer season open.
State officials urge you not only to practice gun safety in the woods but also in your home.
This week most deer hunters are getting their high powered rifles out of storage, and ready for hunting. State officials are urging you make sure that gun will not fall into young hands while preparing for the hunt.
Backwood Outdoors Owner Jackie Sizemore test fires his .243 rifle, getting ready for deer hunting season like hundreds of other hunters are this week.
But state officials from the Department of Human Services to the Department of Natural Resources are urging those hunters to follow gun safety in their home until Saturday especially the parents.
They urge you to make sure that kids can't get ahold of that gun, and prevent unintentional firearm injuries or even death.
"You can educate your kids all you want, but if you have got other kids coming over to your house you going to have to look at some of these options, because obviously you can't educate everybody's kids," said Jackie Sizemore, Backwood Outdoors Owner.
Gun locks are a good idea, but hide the keys.
"Keep the guns and the ammunition in separate places. In the event the kids find one or not the other, you possibly could prevent a bad situation," said John Penuel, Georgia Department of Natural Resources Ranger First Class.
"One thing you could do here is you could remove the bolt. Keep it separate. And without this a gun can't fire," said Sizemore.
The Department of Human Services says guns account for a large percentage of the injuries and deaths to Georgia's children in their own homes. That's why they're stressing gun safety.
Both Sizemore and Ranger Penuel stress that teaching kids the proper use of guns at an early age is a good way to prevent firearm accidents.
They say when a child at an appropriate age is taught to treat every gun like it's loaded and not a toy, that is one way to prevent a tragedy.
Rangers expect a busy opening day Saturday. Deer season continues through January 15th in the Southern Zone.
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