Updated Oct. 7
A 33-year-old Vineyard Haven man shot himself Tuesday evening inside a shelter at the Steamship Authority’s Woods Hole Terminal in what appears to be an accidental discharge, State Police spokesman David Procopio said.
The man, whose name police are not yet releasing because of the ongoing investigation, was taken to Falmouth Hospital with minor injuries with non life-threatening injuries, Procopio said. Police are continuing to investigate, including whether charges will be filed, he said.
Falmouth Police and an ambulance responded to the shooting at about 7:45 pm, SSA spokesman Sean Driscoll told The Times at the scene. No one else was injured.
“One man was in the bus shelter, handled a firearm, I don’t know if he was taking it out of a bag or putting it into a bag, it discharged. It appears to be accidental,” Driscoll said. “He was injured somewhere in his torso, no one else was injured. A passerby called 911 and got Falmouth PD and ambulance out here.”
In a follow-up statement, Driscoll said the man had a handgun.
Procopio wrote in an email that the man told police that the gun discharged as he was attempting to transfer the gun from a locked safe into a holster. “While doing so, he accidentally discharged the pistol and shot himself in the torso,” Procopio wrote.
An unidentified man at the scene told The Times the Vineyard Haven man had just gotten off a bus coming from the Palmer Street lot. He heard the gun go off moments later in the shelter.
“They were startled,” Driscoll said of SSA employees. “Certainly, it’s not something you expect to happen on a Tuesday … it seemed pretty clear, pretty quickly, that it was an accident and not an ominous situation.”
The incident happened in the shelter closest to the ferry terminal, and in the vicinity of where passengers make their way to and from ferries. The shelter where the gun went off is also adjacent to the area where vehicles are staged before loading onto a ferry.
An SSA employee took a Falmouth officer inside the terminal building to show him surveillance video from the scene. It’s unclear how much of the incident may have been caught on tape.
Police at the scene had no comment, and referred questions to the Massachusetts State Police, who took over the investigation because it happened on SSA property. A crime scene investigator could be seen taking photos inside the shelter. A bullet hole pierced the roof of the shelter.
Ferries continued to operate after the shooting, and the terminal building remained open.
In answer to a question about whether firearms are allowed on SSA ferries, Driscoll sent The Times a customer handbook. Firearms are allowed, but they can’t be loaded, and a terminal manager has to be alerted to the firearm, according to the policy. If the passenger is in a vehicle, the unloaded firearm is to be stored and locked inside, or attended. A walk-on passenger must make arrangements with the terminal manager or ferry captain to secure the weapon during the crossing, the handbook states.
“If a person is licensed to carry a concealed firearm, he or she may do so provided, however, that the weapon must remain concealed and unloaded at all times under the direct control of such person, and any ammunition is secured separately,” according to the handbook.
Rifles and shotguns cannot be carried among passengers, the handbook states.
Procopio wrote that any infractions of SSA guidelines wouldn’t apply to the police investigation, but there are criminal laws that could come into play, and charges could be sought.
During a Port Council meeting Wednesday morning, SSA general manager Robert Davis was asked by The Times if port captains log or track when they are notified a passenger is in possession of a firearm.
“I know they have gun cabinets that they secure them in,” he said. “I’m not as familiar, unfortunately, with the procedures …” He went on to say he assumed there were logs, and that “we’ll look into that.”
Asked if there was signage at the ports to notify gun owners they must inform the port captain of what they are carrying, Driscoll intervened on Davis’ behalf and said the question would be answered later. Following the meeting, Driscoll said he didn’t believe signs were posted, and that it was incumbent upon gun owners to familiarize themselves with SSA regulations regarding firearms on SSA ferries and real estate.
Reporter Rich Saltzberg contributed to this story.