ANNAPOLIS (October 22, 2010)—One man is dead and another injured in two separate deer hunting accidents that occurred on Friday on the eastern shore of Maryland. Both incidents were investigated by the Maryland Natural Resources Police — a unit of the Dept. of Natural Resources.
At 10:00 am, NRP responded to Charles Boyles Road in Queen Anne’s County to investigate a fatal deer hunting accident. The investigation revealed that James Albert Newberry, age 75 from Edgewater, Md., was found deceased at the base of a tree by a hunting companion. Newberry’s ladder style tree stand was found broken and detached from the tree. Newberry was not wearing a safety harness at the time of the accident. The body was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner’s in Baltimore for autopsy. NRP’s Special Operations Division is continuing the investigation in the cause of the accident.
The second hunting accident occurred at 12:40 pm on Willey’s Neck Road, Crapo, Dorchester County. NRP’s investigation revealed that Phillip Councell, age 25 from Cordova, Md. was deer hunting with a muzzle loading rifle. Councell attempted to load the rifle by packing black powder into the barrel with a ramrod. The muzzle loader discharged which caused the ramrod to severely injury Councell. A hunting companion, Howard Thomas Callahan, age 25 from Cordova witness the accident. Callahan is a paramedic and rendered aid and called 911 for medical assistance. Due to the remote location of the accident and the extent of injuries suffered by Councell, Callahan requested a helicopter evacuation. Maryland State Police helicopters with Salisbury City Fire Department personnel responded to the scene and airlifted Councell to Peninsula Regional Medical Center for treatment.