Biloxi Police Department offers gun safety tips

News 25 reached out to the Biloxi Police Department to tell us the best ways to properly store and handle firearms to help avoid similar incidents in the future.

Lt. Todd Stewart tells us the best way to prevent unwanted hands on your firearms is to lock them up securely in a place out of reach from children.

He says it’s also important to keep the weapon and ammunition stored in different locations.

In the chance a child does find the firearm, having safety locks on the trigger can help prevent any accident from occurring.

For those who own firearms, it’s always important to properly train yourself and family members and to always treat your weapon as if its loaded. Lt. Stewart said, “You never point the barrel at anybody. If you’re treating it like it’s loaded, a barrel of a weapon should never be pointed at anybody in a joke or jest manner because that’s how accidents happen. If you don’t handle a firearm safely, that’s how accidents happen and accidents cost people their lives.”

Lt. Stewart recommends teaching your children proper firearm safety at a young age. So. they can learn the dangers of improper use early.