A couple of young Iowa hunters are lucky they weren't seriously hurt when one of their shotguns exploded this week while they were hunting snow geese in northern Iowa. The incident underscores a basic lesson: If your gun misfires, stop using it until you can figure out what went wrong. Here's the report from the Iowa DNR: RUTHVEN – A Ruthven man received minor injuries Thursday morning after the barrel of a gun from a fellow hunter exploded hitting him in the hand. Carl Jensen, 19, was treated and released from Emmetsburg Medical Clinic in Emmetsburg after the barrel of a 12-gauge shotgun fired by Ethan Bakken, 19, also of Ruthven, exploded while the two were hunting snow geese in a field northwest of Ruthven at approximately 7:30 a.m. on Thursday. Bakken had taken a shot when a shell in his gun did not fire properly. He reloaded the shotgun and when he fired again, the barrel exploded with pieces of the gun hitting Jensen in the hand. It is believed that the barrel had become obstructed by the misfiring of the first shell. The incident is a reminder to anyone using firearms that if a shell misfires, the shooter should immediately stop using the gun until the barrel can be safely removed and cleared, said DNR Recreational Safety Officer Jeff Barnes. "This applies to trap shooting as well as hunting," said Barnes, pointing out that the scholastic trap shooting season is just beginning. "Anytime a gun misfires, it should not be used again until it can be determined why it misfired and to make sure it is operating correctly," Barnes said. Barnes said the DNR is continuing to investigate the incident to determine why the gun misfired.