EL DORADO COUNTY-

A local man lost part of his leg during a hunting excursion with friends on Saturday in El Dorado County.

The men were hunting for black bear when they came across one and chased it up a tree.

One hunter fired a shot at the bear, and it came down, charging at one of the men.

That man grabbed his .44-caliber handgun to shoot it, but instead shot himself in the leg.

Another hunter shot and killed the bear.

A medical helicopter flew the injured man to Sutter Roseville Medical Center, where doctors unfortunately had to amputate his leg from the knee down.

Needless to say, the man is lucky to be alive.

Back in the 1950’s, before the kind of training and education hunters must now undergo, “There was anywhere from 35-50 fatalities a year,” said Mark Michelizzi of the California Department of Fish and Game, which is investigating the accident.

Compared to this day and age, with an average of 265,000 licensed hunters each year, “Over the last four years, there’s an average of 10 accidents,” Michelizzi added.

The injured man spoke with Fox40 from his bedside on Tuesday. He said he wanted to put this accident behind him, and that he is grateful for the love and support from his family.