ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The St. Louis Fire Department is taking action after the accidental shooting of a 4-year-old St. Louis girl by her 5-year-old sister this weekend.
Chief Dennis Jenkerson announced on KMOX that his department is going on a "blitz" to offer free gun locks to anyone in St. Louis who might need one. It's in partnership with Women's Voices Raised for Social Justice and the "Lock It for Love Partners" program.
Jenkerson says child shootings have made it hard to keep good firefighters and paramedics on staff.
"They see it almost daily and it takes a toll on the members of the fire department. And I've had a difficult time trying to keep people employed," Jenkerson says. "They can only take so much of it."
A 4-year-old girl was accidentally shot by her 5-year-old sister while the girls were playing together at a home in St. Louis on Saturday. The girl was shot in the chest and take to the hospital in critical condition.
Listen to the full conversation on The Charlie Brennan Show with Amy Marxkors, here:
Gun locks will be available for free at all 30 city fire stations, selected branches of the St. Louis Public Library and the St. Louis County Library. Jenkerson says firefighters will do a "blitz" of neighborhoods, handing out the free locks.
"We've got to get out in front of this some way. And if our firefighters and medics can spend 30 minutes, an hour each day knocking on doors, handing out gun locks and we prevent one accidental shooting, we've done our job," Jenkerson says.
So far this year, nine children under the age of 17 have been shot and killed in St. Louis.
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