Woman killed by prop gun on New Mexico movie set

Associated Press

SANTA FE, N.M. — A woman has been killed and a man injured Thursday after they were shot by a prop firearm at a movie set outside Santa Fe, authorities said.

The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said a 42-year-old woman was airlifted to a hospital, where she died, while a 42-year-old man was getting emergency care at another hospital.

Authorities didn’t identify the two people or say if they were actors or crew members.

Production has been halted on the Western movie “Rust,” which is being directed by Joel Souza and produced by Alec Baldwin.

A spokesperson for Baldwin said there was an accident on the set involving the misfire of a prop gun with blanks.

“According to investigators, it appears that the scene being filmed involved the use of a prop firearm when it was discharged,” sheriff’s spokesman Juan Rios told the Albuquerque Journal. “Detectives are investigating how and what type of projectile was discharged.”

Deputies responded about 2 p.m. to the movie set at the Bonanza Creek Ranch after 911 calls came in of a person being shot on set, Rios said.