Sheriff's office warns Floridians not to shoot guns at the hurricane

A Facebook group invited people in the path of Hurricane Irma to shoot at the storm, triggering warning from police

Published September 10, 2017 1:29PM (EDT)

Smith & Wesson handguns.   (AP/John Locher)
Smith & Wesson handguns. (AP/John Locher)

Shooting a gun at a hurricane can be dangerous, a sheriff's office actually had to warn Floridians. A Florida man created a Facebook event last week inviting people to shoot their guns at Hurricane Irma. By Sunday, more than 50,000 people had signed up for the event, some enthusiastically sharing pictures of their weapons that they planned to use on Irma.

"YO SO THIS GOOFY LOOKING WINDY HEADASS NAMED IRMA SAID THEY PULLING UP ON US, LETS SHOW IRMA THAT WE SHOOT FIRST," the Facebook event description said.

22-year-old Ryon Edwards from Daytona Beach told BBC that he made the event out of sheer "stress and boredom."

"The response is a complete and total surprise to me," he said. "I never envisioned this event becoming some kind of crazy idea larger than myself. It has become something a little out of my control."

Crude graphics have subsequently popped up online suggesting that if someone shoots a bullet at a hurricane it could boomerang back at kill the shooter.

http://twitter.com/PascoSheriff/status/906712903868469249

While many of the Facebook users who signed up for the event seemed to do so out of irony, others encouraged people to film the shootings "so you can become very famous!" Some posts on the event page showed Floridians shooting target practice in preparation of the hurricane.

Since Edwards created the page, others of a similar matter have cropped on Facebook, including one dedicated to shooting Hurricane Irma with flame throwers. "It's time we took a stand against this bully!" this event description said. "Join me in this fight as we shoot flames at Hurricane Irma and dissipate her on the spot."


By Taylor Link

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Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Florida Guns Hurricane Irma Natural Disaster Weather