Walker picking mushrooms in Var loses leg after being shot by hunter, 82
A gendarmerie investigation has now been opened into ‘unintentional violence with a weapon’
Hunting rules in France require signs to be placed advising people of shoots
Leitenberger Photography/Shutterstock
A walker in south-east France has had his leg amputated and a gendarmerie investigation has been opened after the man was accidentally shot by wild boar hunters as he was out picking mushrooms.
The man, a 38-year-old father, was shot in the leg during a wild boar hunt that was taking place nearby on October 30, in Bormes-les-Mimosas (Var), reports Var Matin.
He was taken to hospital in Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône) in a serious condition, and later had his leg amputated.
The man had arrived in the area with two friends to pick mushrooms, two hours before the hunt began. The three were in an area authorised for pedestrians.
However, the picker was shot by an 82-year-old hunter, who mistakenly fired at him from just 20 metres away.
‘Any accident is a tragedy’
The local hunting community has condemned the accident.
“I don't condone it,” said Francis Giorgi, president of the Bormes-les-Mimosas hunting club, to France 3 PACA. “Being disabled [in this way] at 38 is a tragedy. Any accident is a tragedy for us in the hunting world.”
He added that safety is a priority for hunters, and they all undergo training. Yet, he added: “I'm not excusing [the hunter].”
‘Unintentional violence’
A gendarmerie investigation is now underway to determine how the accident happened. The hunter who shot the gun is in police custody, and officers are interviewing witnesses.
The investigation was initially opened for “unintentional violence with a weapon”, but could now be reclassified as “unintentional violence with a weapon resulting in permanent disability”, following the victim’s leg amputation.
News of the accident comes just days after a 49-year-old farmer was killed during a hunt in Dordogne. He is thought to have accidentally shot himself.
It also comes just over a month after a criminal investigation was opened in western France after a 42-year-old man was fatally shot in the head while he took part in a wild boar hunt in late September. In the same month, a 56-year-old hunter died after he slipped and shot himself in the chest.
Read also: Hunter, 43, dies after being shot during boar hunt in Normandy
Read also: How often do hunting accidents happen in France?
Rules on hunting in France
There are many rules governing hunting in France (although campaigners regularly call for more).
Read also: Hunting season set to open in France: key information and calendar
Regulations currently require participants to hold valid gun licences, be 100% sober when hunting, wear hi-vis vests and put out signs indicating “Chasse en cours (Hunt in progress)” to warn people that a hunt is underway. There are also rules on the angles, heights and types of targets at which you can shoot.
Nonetheless, a number of fatal hunting accidents always happen over the course of each hunting season, some of which are inevitably firearm-related.
In 2023-24, there were six fatal and 97 non-fatal hunting accidents.
While the vast majority of victims are the hunters themselves, some are bystanders. In particular, this was the case of Morgan Keane, a 25-year-old Franco-British man who was shot dead while chopping wood in his own garden in 2020.
Read also: How to keep hunters out of your garden in France
