THE HUNTING season began on shaky grounds with two hunters dying and 37 injured on Sunday.
Sotiris Neophytou, 55, from Episkopi, was out hunting with his brother and friends in the area of Orites north of Archimadrita village. The party were hunting in a deep ravine and Neophytou was trying to perch himself on a rock when his gun accidentally went off, shooting him in the back.
His brother immediately notified the police and a rescue team was sent. Unfortunately due to the remote area and deep ravine the rescue services were unable to help Neophytou straight away. A police helicopter was needed to lift Neophytou out of the ravine and he was immediately transported to the Paphos Hospital.
Neophytou was pronounced dead on arrival by the doctors, for the bullet from the hunting rifle had wedged into the right rear side of his chest causing excessive bleeding. According to state coroner Eleni Antoniou, who performed the autopsy, there was no foul play and Neophytou’s death was instant.
In the other fatality, Stelios Avraam, 53 from Avgorou, died from a heart attack whilst out hunting and his body was discovered at 8.40am on Sunday morning in a remote area of Paphos. Coroner Sophoclis Sophocleous confirmed the hunter had suffered a heart attack and fell to the ground, hitting his head on a rock.
Meanwhile, a total of 37 hunters were injured on the first day of the hunting season. The highest number of hunting casualties was in the Limassol district, where 10 men were wounded by shots from hunting rifles, while another two hunters were injured in falls. They were all taken to the Limassol General Hospital where they were treated in the casualty department and sent home. Only one man, who suffered a fracture to his leg, was kept for further treatment.
From the Nicosia district eight hunters were slightly injured and taken to Nicosia General Hospital, where they were treated and released. One person sustained a fractured ankle and was kept in for observation.
Nine hunters were lightly injured in the Larnaca district, while Paphos General Hospital treated five hunters for superficial wounds.
In the Paphos district, however, an 18-year-old soldier was hit by two pellets fired by a hunter as he was working on his father’s farm in Drousia. Evgenios Fengara was immediately taken to the Paphos General Hospital where he underwent surgery to remove the pellets from near his lungs. The young man is recovering in the intensive care unit. Doctors have said he is out of danger.
Hunters weren’t the only victims on Sunday. Eighteen hunting dogs were poisoned in Akamas. The poison was placed in dogs’ drinking water and they died instantly. The House Environmental Committee yesterday stated those responsible for the death of the hunting dogs must be sought out and punished for this horrendous act. “These acts undermine our quality of life and present a negative picture of Cyprus as a European State,” said DISY deputy Nicos Tornaritis.
The hunting season lasts until December 31.
