HEALTH DEPARTMENT HANDING OUT FREE GUNLOCKS

QUINCY, Ill. (WGEM) –

With two murders in Quincy in less than six months, and another scare Wednesday over what sounded like shots fired, the community remains concerned about gun violence.

The timing coincides with an effort to secure guns in homes and keep them from getting into the wrong hands. Starting Thursday, July 9, Adams County residents can pick up free gunlocks at the Adams County Health Department. It’s part of a program called Project Childsafe.

The nationwide firearms safety education program was brought here by the Quincy Police Department and SafeKids Adams County. Volunteers will be handing out cable-style gunlocks free of charge for local firearm owners. Officials are pushing gunlocks so families can safely store their firearm and prevent a child or other unauthorized person from accessing a firearm at home.

“We try to do the injury prevention. Gun safety is one of the things that we really like to focus on because it’s a risk,” SafeKids Adams County Coordinator Triena Dietrich said. “Unintentional injuries are one of the main causes of death for children.”

The locks fit most types of handguns, rifles, and shotguns.

Original story on WGEM.com.