Here's a portion of an e-mail I received that gives an update on the condition of Howard Hunter, the HHK PH that was shot in the arm by either the client or his tracker during a buffalo charge. According to Graham Hingeston in a separate e-mail, Howard was "was hit in the left arm, the bullet went in about 4 inches above his wrist travelled up the arm and exited about 4 inches below his elbow."







Dear family and friends,



Considering the circumstances, Howard is doing well. He underwent a "clean up" operation last night where Dr. Stuart Jaffe and Dr. Van Der Plank took out some more bone fragments and some dead tissue. They also managed to stitch the wounds closed. The swelling has gone down a little since yesterday and the doctors found no traces of infection. His finger and thumb movement have improved slightly since yesterday. The long term outlook regarding the nervous system is difficult to assess at this stage until the tissue has been given a few weeks to heal. It is thought that his radial nerve is severely damaged, however the other nerves appear to be ok.

Nerves have a fantastic capacity to regenerate, so there is every possibility that this may happen and a near 100% recovery is possible. Even in the event that the nerve doesn't have a great recovery, there are other options to ensure that he regains complete control over his thumb and forefinger. As I mentioned, the other fingers appear to be in better shape regarding nerve damage. The shattering in both bones is severe and it is most probable that he will require a bone graft in the coming weeks/months to at last one of the bones which has 2 inches of bone completely missing. Michelle (Howard's wife) is quite happy with that because they will take some bone from his bum and make it a little smaller! He will be seen by a physiotherapist today and a neurologist soon to assess the nerve damage. He will be in hospital for at least another two days, after which he will move to a friends/relatives house in JHB.

It is quite likely that he will spend up to six weeks down here while the full extent of the damage is analysed and the route forward is charted. (I will find out more later today after discussing with the doctor) Full recovery is expected within 6 months.

On a sad note, although Howard had good practical treatment from the hospital staff in Bulawayo, the lack of due care by some of the staff and the shortage of pain killers was severely felt, a symptom of the dire situation in Zimbabwe. (If it weren't for all those friends who rushed to his side to take control at the hospital, I think he would have opted to do his own pre-op preparations!) The doctors here in JHB are very happy with the very good pinning job done by Dr. Ncube in Bulawayo, so if anyone can contact him, Howard would appreciate him receiving this email.

Howards outlook has changed dramatically over the last few days, largely due to the treatment from hospital staff in Olivedale clinic in Randburg which has been fantastic. The doctors and nurses are great, the hospital food is good (I know because he orders double desert to keep his brother happy!).

When not too drugged up he is very chirpy and giving Michelle even more trouble than ever! We are having quite a few laughs in the hospital.

Psychologically he is amazing and appears to have put the incident behind him and is purely focussed on the way forward with a speedy recovery. He says he will be in good shape to do some game capture by year end, and it wouldn't surprise me if he does!

Howard will have plenty of time to thank everyone who has helped so far while he sips tea(if he can sit still!) for a few months in Harare, however I will take the liberty to thank everyone on his behalf. Howard has not stopped talking about how great everyone in Bulawayo was. The HHK team (Vince, Charles and Graham) has been fantastic in caring and ensuring that everything possible has been done to get Howard the best treatment in the shortest time possible. I will never be able to remember all the names of people who rushed to his assistance in the aftermath of the accident because there were so many, however a special thanks to Ross and Karen Johnson and Mike Donald who were great in their decision making and in keeping in contact. After a few calls to them shortly after the accident, it was clear that Howard was in good hands and being so far away, this was so important. A special thank you to Dierdre who took very special care of Howard and didn't leave his side until he boarded the flight for Johannesburg. Raphael (head tracker) and Edward (tracker, water carrier) deserve special thanks for their actions during and immediately after the incident. Thanks also to Gomez, Deon, John, Dave.

In his usual style, Howard has been excellent in self help! He did a lot of the treatment on the scene himself and apparently was telling everyone what to do from the outset. He even went so far as to give the client his bag and order him not to miss his flight while trying to stem the blood loss! He hasn't slowed down here either. He wants to administer his own drips, his own injections and won't even let anyone help him get up, dress or go the bathroom. His courage and ability to deal with pain without flinching is amazing and nearly as strong as his mothers.(Well she is a little older than him!)

Shirley, please forward to: Deon, John Sharpe, Dave Lamont, Ross and Karen Johnson, Charlie, Graham, Dierdre and Derek Adams, Mike Donld and anyone else asking about Howards condition.



Best wishes,



Monty

Tough, tough, and tough. I hope he recovers 100%, as he surely deserves it.

Good news. I'm glad he's on the mend.

Before getting his license, Howard managed Lemco and was involved in the reintroduction of buffalo there. I wonder if his experience with game capture didn't help him somewhat as he was trying to fend off that buffalo. I have a funny video of him wrestling a half-sedated warthog that he had darted on the lawn at the Ripple Creek camp. A game scout at Lemco told me a story about accompanying Howard once when they saw a hyena run into an ant bear hole. According to the scout, Howard crawled after the hyena with a flashlight and a handgun, completely disappearing into the hole. After several minutes, there were a couple of muffled shots and Howard comes crabbing out of the hole. One less hyena feeding on the stock.

Like Bill said, Tough...

I wish him the best for a full recovery.

I hope this very brave man makes a full and quick recovery.

We wish him all the best.

And I thought they didn't make 'em like this anymore.

This guy is as hard as nails and has an attitude that just won't quit or take no for an answer.

None of us should forget that in the incident itself, to keep from being gored, it was reported that he literally grabbed the bull by the horns!

I'm betting on (and hoping for) a full and complete recovery.