CHOCOWINITY — A recreational jaunt turned into an unintentional shooting of a 13-year-old boy, according to authorities.

Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office began investigating the incident Monday evening after personnel from Vidant Beaufort Hospital reported a gunshot victim in their emergency department, according to a press release from the sheriff’s office.

What investigators discovered was that the boy, who was visiting Chocowinity from Asheville, and his grandfather were on a pontoon boat, and had stopped on Sydney Creek just off of Chocowinity Bay to shoot 22-caliber rifles toward what they believed to be unoccupied land. According to Lt. Jim Vanlandingham, head of the sheriff’s office criminal investigations unit, the two later reported seeing a man on the bank shooting in their direction. When the shooting stopped, they realized the 13-year-old had been struck by a bullet.

What they did not realize, according to Vanlandingham, was they were shooting in the direction of a home hidden by foliage, and the homeowner was in his yard and could hear bullets flying past him in the direction of the house. When investigators questioned the man shortly afterward, he told them he’d only resorted to firing warning shots after he’d tried yelling several times to get the shooters’ attention. Authorities believe one of his bullets ricocheted off the ground, then off the water, before it hit the boy.

“You could not see the house from the bank. In fact, Investigator (Jeremy) Landek, who located the gentleman who was on the bank, grew up in the area. It was his stomping grounds. He did not even know the house was there until he found the guy — until he got out of his truck and started walking,” Vanlandingham said. “You can’t see it from the air. You can’t even see it on Google maps.”

Vanlandingham said while house was impossible to see from the water, those using firearms in open spaces need to be very aware of where they are shooting, else incidents like this could occur.

“You need to know what your backdrop is. You need to know what you’re shooting. Obviously, this guy, I don’t think the grandfather and boy knew there was a house there,” he said. “Shooting, in my opinion, is best left to shooting ranges.”

The boy did not require surgery and was released Tuesday from the hospital. He is expected to make a full recovery, according to the press release.

Vanlandingham called the incident as an unfortunate incident, and said the case will be referred to the District Attorney’s office for further review.