Man Hospitalized After Shooting Incident
A Haywood County man has been hospitalized after accidentally shooting himself in the face. A 70-year-old man was riding his tractor to grade his driveway in Haywood County near Gates. According to authorities, the man placed a .30 caliber rifle next to him in the tractor. Officials stated the man had trouble with coyotes coming on to his property. “He was trying to check to make sure he was grading in the right spot,” said Captain Billy Blackwell of the Haywood County Sheriff’s Department. Deputies said in the process of checking his driveway, the rifle accidentally fired and struck the man in the face. Authorities are still unsure how it happened. “It went through the side of his face but no damage to his eye or ear. It appeared the only damage done to the tissue and the jaw line,” said Blackwell. Officials said an employee returning a truck found the elderly man who lives alone bleeding on the ground. “Oh yes. If he had been facing straight, he would have probably not been here today,” said Captain Blackwell.
