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Abstract
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This article is a reprint. It was originally published in JEN in the July/August
issue of 1990;16(4):42A-48A.
In April 23, 1987, at approximately 6:20 PM in Palm Bay, Florida, a man began shooting in his neighborhood, then drove to two nearby shopping centers and opened fire again. Thirty minutes later six persons, including two police offers, were dead, and 14 persons, including a paramedic, had been shot or injured. Approximately 7 hours later, the gunman was apprehended without further injuries or loss of life.
The weapon used on all but the initial gunshot victim was a Ruger mini-14 semiautomatic carbine, with 0.223 caliber centerfire cartridge bullets. This combination delivers a bullet at speeds approaching 3000 feet/second with a range of 100 m. These high velocity bullets are likely to tumble when they enter the body, tend to drag more external contaminants, and fracture, creating multiple fragments. Resulting pressure waves injure distant organs and may create a cavity many times the actual size of the bullet. Injuries can range from a single, minor puncture wound to multiple, life-threatening wounds of the chest, abdomen, or head--all of which were seen in the victims (Table 1).
It was an incredibly rapid series of events. The extensive danger zone included the parking lots of two mini-malls...
... Fourteen mass shootings have occurred since 1949, coast to coast, in small towns and big cities. Nine of these have occurred since 1982, perhaps reflecting an increasingly violent society. Such incidents are disasters that, unfortunately, could happen anywhere.
Language: en |