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Couple recovering after accidental church shooting

An 81-year-old man and an 80-year-old woman suffered injuries after a gun accidently went off inside a church in Tellico Plains.

An 81-year-old man and an 80-year-old woman are recovering Friday after they were injured when a gun accidently discharged inside of a church.

Wayne Reid and his wife Katherine were injured when Mr. Reid's gun was accidently fired inside First United Methodist Church in Tellico Plains.

The bullet shot through Wayne Reid's hand and struck Katherine Reid in the abdomen and arm. Katherine Reid suffered a broken arm and both were airlifted to UT Medical Center.

Around 20 people had gathered at the church on Thursday afternoon for a Thanksgiving lunch not affiliated with the church. The topic of gun safety came up and Wayne Reid offered to show his gun to the group.

"Mr. Reid removed his weapon from his rear pocket, said 'I have mine with me,' unloads the weapon, clears it and is showing it off," said Chief Russ Parks of the Tellico Plains Police Department. "He pulls it back out, and as he slides it out of the holster, his finger catches the holster and it discharges."

Parks said the original call to the 911 dispatch center said there were multiple injuries and first responders did not know if there was an active shooter.

"The lady that called dispatch didn’t know where the shot came from, all she heard was the shot and she looks up and there’s blood coming everywhere," Parks said. "It was a very simple miscommunication, but when you get into a high stress situation, it can happen very easily."

The pastor of the church said Wayne Reid has decided to stop carrying a weapon because he no longer feels comfortable doing so after the incident.

"This was not an active shooter situation, this was not a gentleman who was careless with his weapon that got up and was swinging it on his finger," said April White, the 911 director in Monroe County and friend of the Reids. "This was a simple accident."

According to the Reids son, Wayne Reid is expected to be released from the hospital on Friday and Katherine Reid is expected to stay a couple more days.

"His bride is his love of his life," White said. "I am certain he is overwhelmed with remorse over what happened."

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