(TheConservativeTimes.org) – In a new study published by the Centers for Disease Control, forty-three percent of U.S. households are storing loaded guns, which is not considered safe.
In the United States, gun deaths are the leading cause of death for children up to nineteen years old. In 20212, The CDC reported almost five thousand pediatric gun-related deaths in 2021, and it was reported that most of these deaths were unintentional. It’s said that half of those gun owners who do store their guns loaded don’t store them in locked boxes or containers.
The survey was conducted on households in eight states including North Carolina, Ohio, Alaska, Minnesota, California, New Mexico, Nevada, and Oklahoma. Out of the surveyed states, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Nevada have the highest rates of stored loaded guns.
One solution that could make a world of difference is investing in a secure firearm storage box. The firearm should be stored unloaded, in a locked box, with the ammo stored away from it. There are a few options for storing your gun safely, such as gun safes, cable locks, lock boxes, and trigger locks.
“There are a lot of different places that families can go to learn about these various devices. I think one of the secret gems out there is going to your Gun Range Safety Officers,” said Dr. Sandra McKay.
UTHealth Houston’s associate professor of pediatrics, Dr. Sandra McKay, said, “It really comes down to what does the family want or need.” McKay said that the most important consideration is that too many children are getting harmed because of unsafe storage of firearms.
Another study that was done calculated how storing guns properly would affect the fatalities of children because of firearms. According to the study, if twenty percent more parents changed their gun storage practices, then “there would be an estimated decrease of up to 122 pediatric firearm-related fatalities and 201 injuries annually.”
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