Almanac: Falls from deer stands taking a big toll in state

The three deer hunting-related fatalities that have occurred this season all involved deer stands, which underscores their inherent danger, said Mike Hammer, Department of Natural Resources education program coordinator.

"It highlights the fact that a lot of people fall from elevated stands," Hammer said. "We don't know the number."

Several other hunters were injured in non-fatal accidents over opening weekend. "If you fall from a stand, chances are you will get hurt," Hammer said. "And unfortunately, the injuries are often spine- or head-related."

Three hunting-related deaths is one more than occurred all of last year, and is the most since 2006, when four occurred. Last year, a deer hunter and pheasant hunter died in accidents.

The deaths last week:

• A 15-year-old hunter from Mora, who was in a stand, holding his gun between his legs while removing his jacket, when his gun went off, hitting his upper inner leg.

• A 51-year-old hunter from Sartell, who fell from his deer stand in north-central Minnesota, causing his gun to fire, killing him.

Stand safety tips Hammer said hunters should use a full-body safety harness when using deer stands. If possible, they should also keep the harness tethered to the tree when climbing up to and down from the stand and when entering and leaving the stand, he said. Studies of tree-stand accidents show that many falls occur at these times.

Hunters should have a "haul rope" with them so they can climb into their stand with hands free, and then pull their equipment up.

Hammer also recommended adding a nonslip covering to tree stand decks and to the upper surfaces of steps to help prevent loss of traction with muddy boots or in rain or snow.

This season, Minnesota's 16-foot height restriction for elevated stands was removed, and Hammer said the severity of injuries tends to increase with the distance the victim falls.

Non-fatal accidents There were some near misses last week, too.

• A hunter near Wadena tripped and fell, breaking a leg.

• A hunter reportedly had his thumb shot off by a member of another hunting party when a deer ran between them, reports conservation officer Jim Robinson of Slayton. Another hunter there was injured when the barrel on his shotgun exploded because the muzzle was plugged.

• And a hunter near Fosston shot himself in the leg with a handgun. Also near Fosston, a rifle bullet went through the back window of a pickup, narrowly missing the driver.

Deer harvest still down Decent weather this weekend is expected to help boost Minnesota's deer harvest.

As of last week, firearms hunters had registered 91,000 deer, down about 16 percent from the 108,000 killed during the same period last year. That's an improvement from opening weekend, when the harvest was down 20 percent from last year.

High winds gusting to 40 miles per hour likely hampered deer harvest for the opener, Cornicelli said. How windy was it? "A friend said he got seasick in his stand, it was swaying so much," Cornicelli said.

Odds and ends • A hunter near Fergus Falls was rammed by a buck that was missing half its antlers. The hunter was knocked to the ground without injury, and the deer was shot by another member of the same hunting party, reported conservation officer Troy Richards.

• File this under "bummer." Two hunters each shot and tagged deer, but on their way home their tailgate malfunctioned and the deer fell out of the pickup, reports conservation officer Todd Langevin of Center City. The hunters retraced their route but couldn't find the deer.

• In separate incidents, two hunters near Bemidji hit deer with their vehicles on the way to their hunting spots. They both recovered the deer -- and didn't have to use their tags.

• Officer Paul Parthun of Lake George encountered a hunter dressed in blaze orange and riding his bicycle on a county road with his 12 gauge shotgun slung over his back.