(ECNS) -- Residents in Jiangning District, Nanjing, have appealed for an open-air target range to be closed after a young mother was hit by a stray bullet.
Qin Haixia, mother of a nine-month-old baby, had surgery and stay in hospital for about a month. She was hit by a bullet while walking in the community with her family. The bullet that hit her waist was later proved to be from an open-air target range near Nanjing University of Post and Telecommunication.
"I cannot nurse my baby after that," Qin said. "My legs are numb and weak. I cannot do any house work."
An official from the university visited her, and agreed to pay her medical bills and economic losses. "But if it had hit the baby, it would have died," Qin said, adding that the target range is within 2 kilometers of a residential area.
According to residents, it was not the first time a stray bullet had entered their communities. They said apartment and car windows have been struck before.
Police said the stray bullets were fired by students at Nanjing University of Post and Telecommunication during practice. The open air range on the side of Cuiping Mountain has been in use for a long time and no people used to live nearby.
An official with the Jiangning planning bureau said administrators didn't know about the target range when residences were approved for construction.
"Students often miss the target during shooting practice," locals said, adding that they hope the target range would be closed.
