Bullet Hole in The Roof of Home

[Daltex1]

During the last rain storm we had I noticed some sheet rock and part of the ceiling above my back door was getting wet. So after the storm I go out and get on the roof and notice a Perfectly round hole going thru my shingle and thru the wood on my roof. I grab a pocket knife and dig out the bullet! I dont know when it happened but it had to occur between rain storms. There is a gun Range not too far from my home and was thinking that maybe it came from there. I know this is not a very interesting post but thought I would share this story.

[smokindragon]

Wow, that is nuts.

Can that really happen?

Didn't realize a bullet would have that much momentum left to do that.

Kinda scary..

Better start wearing a helmet..

[thankGod]

Well that would be a head-scratcher

Consider yourself blessed! The bullet could have come through a window with a varying number of unhappy scenarios.

[Excaliber]

Wow, that is nuts.

Can that really happen?

Didn't realize a bullet would have that much momentum left to do that.

Kinda scary..

Better start wearing a helmet..

Yup, it sure can.

People have been killed by revelers firing shots into the air on New Year's eve. A round fired at a high angle upwards will come down with an impressive amount of energy behind it.

[WildBill]

Wow, that is nuts. Can that really happen?
Didn't realize a bullet would have that much momentum left to do that.

That's why they have the rule about "Know your target and what is beyond."

[HighVelocity]

Rifle or pistol bullet? What range is nearby?

[Daltex1]

Garland Public shooting Range, rifle bullet.

[Greybeard]

Berms and baffles don't always stop 'em all. If one, there could be more.

With hunting seasons upon us, there have been more than normal big cal. rifle shooters sighting in lately. And some of the 30 calibers can travel several miles.

Are you "downrange" from the firing line?

[bryang]

That is mighty strange. I can't imagine someone missing their target that bad at the range..?? But, as the old saying goes...what goes up, must come down...somewhere. I am thankful no one was hurt. You know, I think I would go and visit that range and just see where my house is positioned in relation to the back stop of the range. You might show it to them. I don't know what good that would do, but something very dangerous is going on somewhere around you.

-geo

[NcongruNt]

That is mighty strange. I can't imagine someone missing their target that bad at the range..?? But, as the old saying goes...what goes up, must come down...somewhere. I am thankful no one was hurt. You know, I think I would go and visit that range and just see where my house is positioned in relation to the back stop of the range. You might show it to them. I don't know what good that would do, but something very dangerous is going on somewhere around you.

-geo

It could have easily been a ricochet. While it doesn't happen all that often, I've heard rounds ricochet off into the distance a few times at outdoor ranges, and the guns were aimed and targeting the target boards and into the berm.

Looking at a map of where the range is, it seems to be just outside city limits. I don't know what it's like where you are, but if there's anyplace nearby that's suitable for hunting, it's possible a hunter who didn't practice proper shooting rules (taking a shot upwards at an animal above him, for example) could have originated the shot.

You could probably tell the direction it originated from the entry angle and direction of the hole.

Out of curiosity, is the bullet intact enough to tell what caliber it is?

EDIT: I just had another thought. Eagle Peak owns the Garland range. They do not allow FMJ rifle ammo. I'm not sure how strict they are about monitoring what everyone is shooting, but if it's a FMJ bullet, it's not as likely it came from there. Also, ricochets are usually tumbling. You described the hole as round, so it seems to me that it was likely an AD or errant hunting shot.

[The Annoyed Man]

I just happened to be watching the local DFW Fox affiliate this morning on TV, and they reported on someone who had attended the race this weekend at the Texas Motor Speedway. A "large caliber" bullet came down through the roof of their motor home and struck the wife. Oddly, they didn't report on her condition, but they did hold up the bullet in question for the camera, and it was obviouly a .50 BMG bullet!

Then the (obviously air-headed male) reporter opined that it was perhaps from a large caliber handgun that was fired in the area by a racetrack tailgate partyer.

I can't imagine any handgun chambered in .50 BMG in the first place; and I certainly can't imagine anyone stupid enough to try and fire it if there were such a thing.

BTW, I have personally rendered assistance to 2 different people who were hit by bullets falling out of the sky. One was a lady who was hit in the top of her left shoulder by a .223 bullet which very nearly killed her. She survived only by 14 hours of surgery, a complete blood transfusion, and the grace of God. The other was a guy who was hit by a .45 ACP FMJ bullet that came down through the rag top of his jeep, hit him in the thigh and broke his femur. I know, I know, I know.... Mythbusters allegedly debunked it. I've seen the episode. All I can say is that those guys never spent the years working in an ER that I spent. It can happen, and the injury potential can be devastating.

[KC5AV]

Actually, I thought Mythbusters confirmed it. They determined that a bullet shot straight up won't (necessarily) come down with lethal velocity, but that one shot up off of vertical will have potentially lethal velocity.

[Keith B]

The difference in trajectory can make a difference in the impact of the projectile.

If the bullet is shot into the air at a high enough angle to bleed off all velocity before starting back to earth, then the bullet will only reach terminal velocity as it falls back to earth. If the angle of trajectory is low enough that the projectile is still traveling under the forces exerted by the firearm, then the velocity can be MUCH greater. A low angle shot can still come back down and travel through something with enough energy to do substantial damage (i.e. lodge in a roof, go into the body, through a Jeep rag-top, etc!)

[The Annoyed Man]

Maybe I'm not remembering the Mythbusters episode correctly then. All I know is that the woman hit with the .223 had the bullet strike her in the top of the shoulder (I don't know the downward angle). It traveled down through her left chest; holed her lung and diaphragm, holed her stomach, spleen, and bowel; hit the inside of her left pelvis and ricocheted to the right, tearing out her bladder; hit the inside of her right pelvis, bounced up and came to rest in the dome of her liver. She is VERY lucky to be alive. The victim was walking along the Rose Parade route (along with about a bazillion other people) on New Year's eve when the bullet struck her. Nobody ever heard the shot, so it must have come in from a ways away.

The guy hit with the .45 never heard the shot either. Both were not near any kind of high-rise buildings, so the shots did not come from directly above. They must have arced in from a significant distance.

[Keith B]

Maybe I'm not remembering the Mythbusters episode correctly then. All I know is that the woman hit with the .223 had the bullet strike her in the top of the shoulder (I don't know the downward angle). It traveled down through her left chest; holed her lung and diaphragm, holed her stomach, spleen, and bowel; hit the inside of her left pelvis and ricocheted to the right, tearing out her bladder; hit the inside of her right pelvis, bounced up and came to rest in the dome of her liver. She is VERY lucky to be alive. The victim was walking along the Rose Parade route (along with about a bazillion other people) on New Year's eve when the bullet struck her. Nobody ever heard the shot, so it must have come in from a ways away.

The guy hit with the .45 never heard the shot either. Both were not near any kind of high-rise buildings, so the shots did not come from directly above. They must have arced in from a significant distance.

Unless the shot is almost vertical (IIRC >80° from horizontal), the projectile can still contain energy form the propulsion. Also, any kind of ricochet can still have a substantial amount of energy left, and could come down at a steep angle from above if hitting a surface at the right angle. High powered rifle projectiles can travel a mile or two without loosing too much of their momentum.

All in all, it is just darn dangerous to not know your backstop and to shoot blindly in the air, no matter what the angle.


Edited to add: here is the link to the video about the lady at Texas motor Speedway that got hit by the .50 cal http://www.myfoxdfw.com/myfox/pages/New ... geId=3.2.1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;