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How guns on movie sets are suppose to work

The sheriff’s department is investigating and many things are still unknown, including whether Hutchins was killed by a real bullet or a blank.
Credit: AP
Alec Baldwin speaks on the phone in the parking lot outside the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office in Santa Fe, N.M., after he was questioned about a shooting on the set of the film "Rust" on the outskirts of Santa Fe, Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021. (Jim Weber/Santa Fe New Mexican via AP)

SANTA FE, N.M. — Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins died Thursday after a prop firearm that actor Alec Baldwin was holding discharged on the New Mexico set of “Rust.”

Director Joel Souza was also hit and injured but has since been released from the hospital.

Hutchins, 42, was airlifted to a hospital where she was pronounced dead. Souza, 48, was wounded in his collarbone area, and taken by ambulance to a nearby medical center.

RELATED: 'No words to convey my shock': Alec Baldwin issues statement after firing prop gun, killing cinematographer

The sheriff’s department is investigating and many things are still unknown, including whether Hutchins was killed by a real bullet or a blank.

On movie sets, weapons masters are in charge of the weapons and must be present when a weapon is being used. And according to guidelines of the Actors’ Equity Association, firearms must be loaded by the prop master, armorer or experienced persons working under their direct supervision.

Baldwin called the incident a "tragic accident" on Friday and says he is fully cooperating with the police investigation.

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