Huntington Beach SWAT officer hurt after gun accidently goes off

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- A SWAT team member from the Huntington Beach Police Department was rushed to the hospital after another officer's gun accidentally went off inside the police station.

The incident happened around 10 p.m. Wednesday. The veteran officers, who are good friends, were cleaning their firearms in a basement room at the Huntington Beach Police Department. The weapons were not supposed to be loaded.

According to police, a firearm accidentally discharged, and the round struck the floor and ricocheted, hitting an officer in the leg.

The officer underwent surgery at UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange. His injury was not life threatening.

"Guns aren't ever loaded during the cleaning, and that's what we're looking into, how this accident happened," said Huntington Beach Police Capt. Russell Reinhart.

The identities of the officers involved were not immediately released. The incident will be investigated by the Orange County Sheriff's Department. There will also be an internal investigation.

"It goes to show that accidents can happen in any walk of life," said Orange County Sheriff's Department spokesman Jim Amormino. "Police officers are human, and sometimes, things like this happen.

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