Most of us have probably accidentally left something behind on a vacation at one point or another, but I never really thought that a firearm would be so easily forgotten.
Police in Gulf Shores, Alabama, though, say they’ve had 40 guns turned in over the past couple of months that were discovered in rental properties and hotel rooms. Now they’re reminding the public to make sure they’re packing up their pistols at the end of their stay.
“On one occasion, we recovered three in one day and so we finally hit that point where we were like, we’ve got to say something to the public where we hit the forty,” said Detective Carl Wittstruck with Gulf Shores Police. “Actually, thirty-nine last week and one more this weekend which put us at forty during the summer season.”
It’s a high number and leads to many questions, some which police have answers to and others they don’t. They said it’s primarily cleaning crews who find the pistols left behind in closets, drawers and other places. While they applaud those services for turning them in, Police said there’s no way to know how many are found and not reported, or found by the next family in.
“For us, it’s very concerning because if one is left behind, a cleaning crew doesn’t find it, the next guest checks in, they have children, they come across a firearm…and we’re trying to avoid a tragedy,” Wittstruck explained.
Considering the thousands of visitors to Gulf Shores this summer, forty guns isn’t a particularly large number. But you’d think that if a gun is important enough to bring along on vacation, it would also be important enough for the gun owner to ensure it’s not left behind.
Police want visitors to have a plan in place if they are bringing their firearm with them to make sure it doesn’t get left behind. This can be done through a reminder on your smart phone, a note posted in your vehicle or like some people, keep it in the same location as your keys and wallet while here, making it near impossible to leave without it.
Police said none of the guns recovered have been reported stolen. If they’re not claimed within 90 days they’ll be destroyed.
Sounds like there are dozens of individuals who need to get in touch with the local police to get their guns back before they’re gone forever. I don’t know why the Gulf Shores PD would want to destroy the firearms when they could auction them off to the highest bidder instead. I’m sure the department could use the extra money, and if not then they could always use the proceeds for a public service campaign aimed at reminding tourists to check and make sure they’ve got their guns and ammunition before they head out of town.
As for the GSPD’s advice, it’s not a good idea for folks to leave their firearm beside their wallet and keys, at least if they’ve got young kids with them. My late wife always had a checklist when we took a family trip, both for when we left on our vacation and when we headed home, and including a bullet point to “pack up the pistol” isn’t a bad idea. If there’s a mad scramble to get out of the rental at the end of your stay it can be easy to forget a few things, but a gun really isn’t something you want to leave behind.
Editor’s Note: Real gun safety doesn’t involve gun control, but it does rely on some common sense.
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