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Live round in Prop Gun


Junior8

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I find my self wondering how a live round was anywhere near the set, let alone in the weapon. Surely the armourer would have checked the weapon was loaded with the correct ammunition immediately before handing it to the actor. I smell negligence (assuming it was not murder).
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I find my self wondering how a live round was anywhere near the set, let alone in the weapon. Surely the armourer would have checked the weapon was loaded with the correct ammunition immediately before handing it to the actor. I smell negligence (assuming it was not murder).

We DO need to be careful with speculation until everything is revealed but some news reports this morning would indicate that a live round was in the weapon which allegedly wasn't checked before handing to the actor.

 

In any event - a real tragedy and a salutary lesson to check it, check it & check it again.

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If the action had no requirement for live rounds, then I agree that no such should have been on or near the set. However I believe that under certain circumstances, that the firing of live rounds may be permitted for realism. Under such circumstances, extreme care is needed to ensure that live rounds are only supplied when required and are removed and locked away when not required.

 

I would however expect that anyone handed a gun that is stated to be empty, or to be loaded with only blank rounds, should point the weapon in a safe direction whilst confirming the facts for themselves.

 

I have lawfully used a shotgun, and would treat such a weapon as being loaded until PERSONAL INSPECTION showed it to be empty. No matter whom assures one that a gun is safe, personal inspection is advised.

 

In the USA, firearms are widely used for self defence and other purposes and their might be a risk of over familiarity. Accidents have previously occurred on film sets but are rare. Accidents involving guns in the home are regrettably common.

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I agree, and the earlier reports of this tragedy suggested that a blank round was fired with tragic results. Later reports however suggest that the gun contained a live round.

 

Blank rounds are much less dangerous than live ammunition but should still be kept secure and used with great care. A blank round is unlikely to kill unless at very close range. ISTR a case some years ago in which an actor fired a handgun loaded with blanks at their head, at close range. The blast killed them due to a fractured skull.

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While the details are still unclear around this, it would seem there had been some reports of issues with firearm safety on the set which resulted in some of the camera crew walking off set.

 

It should also be noted that terminology can be a little confusing - a blank will often be referred to as a "live round" as opposed to an inert firearm.

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While the details are still unclear around this, it would seem there had been some reports of issues with firearm safety on the set which resulted in some of the camera crew walking off set.

 

It should also be noted that terminology can be a little confusing - a blank will often be referred to as a "live round" as opposed to an inert firearm.

So farI'd only been aware of walkouts due to accomodation for the crew being 50 miles away and the resulting long commute.
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On 10/23/2021 at 6:59 PM, sunray said:
On 10/23/2021 at 7:36 AM, johnlinford said:

While the details are still unclear around this, it would seem there had been some reports of issues with firearm safety on the set which resulted in some of the camera crew walking off set.

 

It should also be noted that terminology can be a little confusing - a blank will often be referred to as a "live round" as opposed to an inert firearm.

So farI'd only been aware of walkouts due to accomodation for the crew being 50 miles away and the resulting long commute.

From LA Times

Safety protocols standard in the industry, including gun inspections, were not strictly followed on the “Rust” set near Santa Fe, the sources said. They said at least one of the camera operators complained last weekend to a production manager about gun safety on the set. Three crew members who were present at the Bonanza Creek Ranch set on Saturday said they were particularly concerned about two accidental prop gun discharges.Baldwin’s stunt double accidentally fired two rounds Saturday after being told that the gun was “cold” — lingo for a weapon that doesn’t have any ammunition, including blanks — two crew members who witnessed the episode told the Los Angeles Times.“There should have been an investigation into what happened,” a crew member said. “There were no safety meetings. There was no assurance that it wouldn’t happen again. All they wanted to do was rush, rush, rush.” A colleague was so alarmed by the prop gun misfires that he sent a text message to the unit production manager. “We’ve now had 3 accidental discharges. This is super unsafe,” according to a copy of the message reviewed by The Times.

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While the details are still unclear around this, it would seem there had been some reports of issues with firearm safety on the set which resulted in some of the camera crew walking off set.

 

It should also be noted that terminology can be a little confusing - a blank will often be referred to as a "live round" as opposed to an inert firearm.

So farI'd only been aware of walkouts due to accomodation for the crew being 50 miles away and the resulting long commute.

From LA Times

Safety protocols standard in the industry, including gun inspections, were not strictly followed on the "Rust" set near Santa Fe, the sources said. They said at least one of the camera operators complained last weekend to a production manager about gun safety on the set. Three crew members who were present at the Bonanza Creek Ranch set on Saturday said they were particularly concerned about two accidental prop gun discharges.Baldwin's stunt double accidentally fired two rounds Saturday after being told that the gun was "cold" — lingo for a weapon that doesn't have any ammunition, including blanks — two crew members who witnessed the episode told the Los Angeles Times."There should have been an investigation into what happened," a crew member said. "There were no safety meetings. There was no assurance that it wouldn't happen again. All they wanted to do was rush, rush, rush." A colleague was so alarmed by the prop gun misfires that he sent a text message to the unit production manager. "We've now had 3 accidental discharges. This is super unsafe," according to a copy of the message reviewed by The Times.

Oh dear. Me thinks heads will roll...
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We have said here many times before, cut corners at your peril.

 

ALLEGEDLY!: The crew were moved to cheaper accommodation to save money which made their drive unsafe after 12 hour plus shifts. There were various complaints so they brought in non-IATSE crew. This was only the armourer's second film and, though her father is a reputable film armourer she was a model until recently. There was no need for a gun to be present as they were just rehearsing and during the live action the victims would have been elsewhere anyway. The AD didn't check the weapon before handing it to the actor and, in short, everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong.

 

The fact that it was a low budget film or that money was tight lead us to another favourite BR topic; if you can't afford to do it safely you can't afford to do it at all.

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