Good Samaritan helps Florida man who accidentally shot himself in the penis

There are thousands of accidental firearm discharges in the US every year, many are fatal

A man accidentally shot himself in the penis, and was taken to the hospital for surgery (Getty Images)

A Florida man has been rushed to the hospital by a kind stranger after accidentally shooting himself in the penis.

Shanekia Roberts, 25, told police that Cedrick Jelks, 38, came into her home in a panic and ran straight to the bathroom. She followed the intruder and saw that he had a gunshot wound to his crotch, so she gave him a lift to the hospital. Jelks underwent surgery there.

Jelks, who was convicted in 2004 for cocaine possession, reportedly told Ms Roberts that he had sat on his firearm, causing it to go off, local media reported.

The victim of the accidental gunshot may be facing charges once he is cleared from the hospital, however, since he is a convicted felon and likely unable to be in possession of a firearm.

There are more guns in circulation in the United States than there are people, with a rough ration of 113 guns for every 100 people. And, accidental shootings are a real problem — particularly with children.

There are 1.7 million children who live with unlocked and loaded guns in the US, accounting for roughly one in three homes with kids, according to data from the Centre for Injury Research and Prevention at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

That access to firearms amongst children results in thousands of accidental deaths a year. There were 2,549 children killed in 2014 from guns, and an additional 13,576 more were injured. People who die from accidental shooting were more than three times as likely to have a firearm in their homes. As for children, 89 percent of accidental deaths occur at home when a child i playing with an unlocked gun.