In the wake of the terrible drama at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, there has been a nationwide run on bulletproof backpacks.
A company called Bullet Blocker sells those fortified knapsacks for anywhere between $200 and $500. The day after the shooting, the company sold 500 of their bags nationwide, a 30% spike in regular sales on any item.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Can a bulletproof backpack save your child's life? We put one to the test <a href="https://t.co/ZYPBJL4p0B">https://t.co/ZYPBJL4p0B</a></p>— ABC13 Houston (@abc13houston) <a href="https://twitter.com/abc13houston/status/965084828755480577?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The company's owner, Mr Joe Curran, admits that the majority of those backpacks are headed to Florida, but adds that there has been a run on his products all around the US this week.
The backpacks are made with a Kevlar lining, only weighing about 4 1/2 pounds.
A local TV station in Houston put the backpacks to the test, with the help of Mr Jeffrey Kimball, a former police officer and firearms instructor at Arms Room in League City.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Bulletproof backpack inserts from SC store draw attention after school shooting <a href="https://t.co/UZPgVO3L4L">https://t.co/UZPgVO3L4L</a> <a href="https://t.co/VvxqladX9K">pic.twitter.com/VvxqladX9K</a></p>— The State Newspaper (@thestate) <a href="https://twitter.com/thestate/status/964860514575663105?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2018</a></blockquote>
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In order to simulate body mass, he placed a barrel behind the backpack, took a few steps back and fired at it from about 10 yards away.
Related coverage: <a href=" http://thegoldwater.com/news/18689-Father-Who-Opened-Home-To-Florida-Gunman-Struggles-With-Mass-Shooting"> Father Who Opened Home To Florida Gunman Struggles With Mass Shooting</a>.
Mr Kimball commented: "This type of plate is rated for pistols, not necessarily rifles. I expected the rifle to defeat this body armour and it did."
At first, he tested it with a 9mm Glock, which the backpack indeed easily stopped. But when using an AR-15 rifle, the same weapon used this week in the Parkland school shooting by Nikolas Cruz, it unfortunately went straight through the backpack.
"This is a type of soft body armour police officers would wear, this is not rifle rated, just like what police wear is not rifle rated."
Related:
https://thegoldwater.com/news/18584-Florida-Shooting-Spurs-Copycats-Arrests-Across-The-Country
Source:
http://abc13.com/a-bulletproof-backpack-we-put-one-to-the-test/3102189/?sf182436903=1
Twitter: #MarjoryStonemanDouglasHigh #Parklandstrong #parkland #ParklandSchoolShooting #guncontrol
