Ten-year-old boy playing with gun shoots and kills 12-year-old brother

The 12-year-old is the third child to be killed in a gun accident in less than a week

A 10-year-old boy reportedly shot and killed his 12-year-old brother after the two began playing with a gun they found in their St Louis home.

A parent was reportedly in the house getting a haircut when the older boy was shot in the face.

The shooting occurred on Tuesday night at a home in the 5600 block of Summit Place, according to KMOV.com. Just before 8pm, the boys were playing in the Walnut Park West neighbourhood while their parent was receiving a haircut. That's when the 12-year-old, identified by the outlet as Lafrance Johnson, was shot.

The gun was reportedly owned by a 36-year-old woman who was subsequently arrested for endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death.

St Louis police are concerned with the recent uptick in accidental shooting deaths and injuries among children.

Days before the 12-year-old was shot, another 12-year-old and a 14-year-old were shot and killed in the city. The teens were attending a birthday party at a rented apartment when they died around 2am.

The 12-year-old girl was reportedly streaming on Instagram Live while she was playing with a gun. She shot and killed her cousin accidentally, then reached for the gun and accidentally shot herself in the head, according to the family

Last month, a 12-year-old girl was wounded during an accidental, self-inflicted shooting.

The shootings have prompted St Louis Metropolitan Police Major Ryan Cousins to urge residents to install gun locks on their weapons.

“This is like the third incident in a week we’ve had so far. Prior to that, we have sent out information to the alderpersons about receiving gun locks,” Mr Cousins said. "As an agency, we will come out and teach everyone how to use them. We do understand people are going to own guns; however, to protect these children, we want to ensure these guns are secured safely.”

The city began giving away free gun locks in February to help reduce gun deaths from accidents and suicides, which account for the majority of firearm deaths. Approximately 4,500 gun locks will be distributed, with priority placed on homes where gun accidents have already occurred and homes in which children are living in the same home as a registered gun owner.

“No matter how this turns out, I want to remind everyone that the St. Louis Fire department, all 30 stations, have gun locks," St Louis Director of Public Safety Dan Isom said. "We encourage people to go to those stations to get gun locks to secure weapons so we can keep young people safe.”