The Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office reports that an active duty sailor who lives at Naval Base Kitsap – Bangor accidentally shot himself in the hand while cleaning a handgun in an apartment in the 12000 block of Cloudy Peak Lane NW in Silverdale on Saturday afternoon.

The man told police he was cleaning a .45 caliber Glock 21 semi-automatic handgun when it accidentally discharged. In order to clean the gun, it needs to first be cleared and the trigger must be pulled. The victim told police that “he normally catches the chambered round while clearing the weapon,” but in this case it discharged, a Winchester Hollow Point bullet went through his hand, struck a flat screen television and remained lodged there.

A deputy later observed gun cleaning equipment on the floor and the pistol was lying on a TV stand.

“The magazine had been removed and was lying next to the pistol,” a deputy wrote in his report. “I also observed a bullet hole in the screen of the TV. I checked the back of the TV and did not find an exit hole indicating that the bullet stayed within the TV. I observed a blood trail leading from the living room to the kitchen area and out to the front door. The victim met medics at the door and walked out to the aid unit under his own power.”

The man who shot himself in the hand was transported to Harrison Medical Center in Silverdale before being airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Deputies report that he was stable and never lost consciousness. Deputies also notified the man who leases the apartment, also an active duty sailor at Bangor, about the shooting.