November 9, 2012
From JournalPatriot.com
A man was seriously injured this morning when he fell out of a tree stand in the Pattons Ridge area about a mile below the Blue Ridge Parkway in northwestern Wilkes County.
The victim’s name wasn’t available by late this morning, but he is about 40 years old. Emergency personnel said he apparently broke both of his legs below the knees and had other possible injuries.
The hunter fell 25 to 30 feet from a tree stand while hunting with a muzzle loader rifle.
When the man stood up in the stand, turned around, fired and hit the coyote while not secured with a safety harness, said emergency personnel, the muzzle loader’s recoil made him loose his balance and fall out of the stand to the ground.