Click the play button on the video window to the right to see the storyMESA, AZ -- A 5-year-old boy died after fire officials said he accidentally shot himself in an East Valley home Monday morning.
Officials with Rural Metro said the boy found a 9mm gun in a bedroom and shot himself in the abdomen just before 10 a.m. at a home near 98th Street and University Drive.
The boy’s father reportedly called 911 and, during the call, the child stopped breathing.
The father then performed CPR until paramedics arrived, Rural Metro officials said.
Despite Rural Metro's report that the boy had accidentally shot himself, a spokesperson for the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office said the cause of the shooting is still under investigation.
"They wouldn't hurt their child -- I'll tell you that," said Lawrence Gage, the family's next-door neighbor.
"I'm a gun owner myself, so I just don't understand if you keep a gun in the house with kids, there's not a lock on it or something so the kids can't get at it," said Fred Krumseik, a neighbor. "I just pray for their family."
Neighbors said they didn't hear anything until police arrived at the scene, but told ABC15 they had initially heard the boy was in critical condition.
The boy was transported by helicopter to Maricopa County Medical Center in Phoenix.
Officials said the boy had lost a lot of blood and died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
Valley Dr. says this case underscores dangers of kids and guns
Dr. Patrick O'Neill is one of Maricopa Medical Center's trauma surgeons.
"It is a senseless tragedy and it should never happen," said Dr. O'Neill.
Not only does Dr. O'Neil operate on many young gunshot victims, Dr. O'Neill himself is a registered gun owner.
He says it giving him a unique perspective on the problem of kids and guns.
"(It's) certainly a significant problem," said Dr. O'Neill. "We see it frequently. In my mind one is too many."
While officials say the 5-year-old shot himself with a 9 mm gun, the Maricopa Medical Center has seen an uptick in injuries from pellet and BB guns.
In fact, Dr. O'Neill recently published a
paper in a leading medical journal about three air gun injuries.
"Specifically with intra-cranial penetration of the BB, 2 of the 3 children died," said Dr. O'Neill.
Dr. O'Neill hopes parents, if they don't already, will begin practicing gun safety. He speaks not just as someone who sees the after effects but also as a father.
"It's hard," said Dr. O'Neill. "I'm a father. I have 2 young men, 14 and 16. I've taught them gun safety from the very beginning."
Because, Dr. O'Neill says no parent should ever want to see their child end up in the trauma bay, where, as one family saw, it's often too late.
