An off-duty Edmonton police officer accidentally shot himself in the leg while at an EPS gun range Sunday afternoon.
The shooting happened at around 1 p.m,. at the Constable William Nixon Memorial Training Centre just off 129 Avenue and 9 Street NE, in northeast Edmonton, according to the division’s watch commander.
“One of our off-duty members is part of our EPS gun club,” Staff Sgt. Paul Czerwonka told Global News, adding officers get together sometimes on days off to do target practice.
Czerwonka described it as an “accidental discharge.”
“Nothing intentional. Unfortunately he was hurt in his upper leg,” Czerwonka said.
Officers shut down several northside roads while a police-escorted ambulance took the injured office to the Royal Alexandra Hospital.
“He was conscious and breathing. His injuries are not life-threatening. Our members block the intersections to get the ambulance to the hospital as soon as we could.”
Police were locking down the scene as a preliminary investigation got underway to make sure protocol was followed in terms of the use of the range.
“Our members are trained extensively in the use of firearms and the safety behind it. Sometimes weapons do accidentally discharge,” Czerwonka said.
“We are just treating it as an investigation right now of what happened. Interviewing some of the members that were there, interviewing a member in the hospital. At the end of the day will just figure out what happened.”