JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An 8-year-old boy was shot in the leg Monday after a gun that was hidden in a barrel was set off by burning trash, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said.
A group of children were helping their grandmother clean the backyard of a home on Devonshire Boulevard on Monday afternoon, JSO said. The group did not know there were two guns hidden inside the burn barrel that they were loading with debris and yard waste.
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JSO said when the guns were set on fire, it caused one of the guns to go off. The 8-year-old, who was standing next to the barrel, was hit in the lower leg in what police described as a “through and through” injury that was not life-threatening.
The grandmother did not hear the shot at the time but realized the child was hit once he started screaming, police said. She also told police that she heard two additional shots as she was leaving to drive to the hospital with the children.
JSO said two guns were found burned and partially melted under the debris in the barrel.
Investigators said the incident appeared to be accidental and negligent, but there were no signs of malicious intent.
Investigators are working to learn who stored the guns in an unsafe place. Anyone with information is asked to call JSO at 904-630-0500 or CrimeStoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.