Residents are being reminded of the dangers involved in the careless use of pellet guns after a child was sent to hospital with an eye injury.

RCMP recently received a report of an 8-year-old who was shot in the eye with a pellet gun by another 8-year-old in a small community in southwestern Manitoba.

On Twitter, RCMP Manitoba explained the youth lost his eye after being shot with the pellet gun. Police say the incident appears to be accidental, though the investigation is ongoing.

RCMP Media Relations' Julie Courchaine says they want parents to know pellet guns can cause serious injury and need to be stored properly, "so we can try and prevent something like this from happening again."