Finnish gun manufacturer recalls faulty hunting weapons
American man injured when Sako rifle explodes
The Finnish hunting rifle manufacturer Sako has recalled nearly 3,000 of its guns with a potential defect that could cause it to break apart when fired. In October, Mark Almeida, a 45-year-old American living in University Place, Washington, suffered injuries to his hand when his new Sako 300 Winchester Short Mag Finnlight model rifle exploded while he was shooting at a firing range.
"The target was 200 yards away when I pulled the trigger. The gun let out a powerful explosive sound that I had never heard before, and it broke up in my hands", he explains. He was rushed to hospital with four broken bones in his hand. He was in surgery for four hours.
After the incident, Sako ordered a recall of its series of 2,700 weapons.
Sako CEO Henry Paasikivi says that a total of six guns are known to have malfunctioned in the same way - one of them in Finland. In one case, a Swedish boy lost the tip of his thumb.
The barrels would break up lengthwise into several fragments, and in some cases, other parts of the gun also broke. The problem was attributed to a weakness in the stainless steel used in the manufacture. Guns of the series in question were sold to several countries, from the United States to New Zealand, before the defect was noticed.
All buyers have been notified, and most of the guns have been returned to the factory for repairs or replacement, except for a few in the United States.
The faulty rifles were manufactured at the company's factory in Riihimäki last year. They include Sako and Tikka models.
When the problems arose, Sako immediately discontinued production and deliveries of the models, and began to recall them from retailers, and contacted individual buyers.
However, the company did not make any public statements at the time. "We did not consider that necessary, because we were able to reach all owners of the weapons in other ways", he said.
"We have got all of the guns back, except in the United States, and 90 percent of the weapons we sold there have been located. All consumers have been contacted a long time ago."
Paasikivi says that the weapons will be repaired, if necessary, and sent back to the owners.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 17.1.2005 - TODAY |
 Finnish gun manufacturer recalls faulty hunting weapons |
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