State officials urge caution after close calls near popular shooting area


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SYRACUSE — An area just off the road to Antelope Island State Park has proven to be a popular spot for target shooters, but state officials were calling for caution and common sense Wednesday after widespread littering in the area and several close calls.

Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands spokesperson Jason Curry said the most recent case came within the past two weeks when an errant shot from the wetland area broke a window in the middle of a sewage treatment facility roughly three-quarters of a mile to the east.

North Davis Sewer District manager Kevin Cowan pointed to the broken first pane of glass and the bullet lodged at the bottom of the window.

"As you can see, it's head-high," Cowan explained. "We have operators and construction workers that walk along this sidewalk all the time."

Cowan said workers have found discharged ammo on the property on past occasions.

"This is a risk to our employees," he said.

Curry said there have been other close calls as well with out-of-view recreators.

"We've had a number of complaints where folks have taken off, gone for a walk down this trail," Curry said. "Someone is literally hitting the dirt, ducking from rounds snapping overhead."

Target shooting in the area is legal, but there are rules.

Signs note that shooting is prohibited within 600 feet of the checkpoint on the road to Antelope Island, that lead ammunition is not allowed on the lake bed, and that littering is illegal.

Still, a large section of the area was speckled Wednesday with broken targets, glass, trash, spent shotgun shells and bullet casings.


We've had a number of complaints where folks have taken off, gone for a walk down this trail. Someone is literally hitting the dirt, ducking from rounds snapping overhead.

–Jason Curry


"All of these represent pieces of lead that are out there somewhere on the wetland," Curry said, nodding to several casings in his hand.

Garrett Meyer and Chandler Meyer, who went out with a shotgun and clay pigeons Wednesday, said they liked the area for its convenience and openness.

They said they followed the rules: using the proper ammo, shooting away from people and cleaning up after themselves.

They also said they know not everybody is like them.

"We have left before because we felt that it was unsafe," Garrett Meyer said, referencing a previous trip.

"They were just blasting away – no respect of us or the people around them," Chandler Meyer added.

As state officials urged target shooters to be careful and follow the rules, the men also encouraged common sense.

"When you load a firearm that has the potential to take someone's life, it needs to be pointed in a safe direction," Garrett Meyer said. "It needs to be handled with the proper respect that it deserves."

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