After gun accident, a local man’s leg will be amputated. Here’s why he feels gratitude

RIGBY — A 45-year-old man will lose part of his leg in a surgery this week after a horrific accident nearly took his life.

Daniel Bradshaw of Rigby is set to get a below-the-knee amputation on his right leg in Salt Lake City on Wednesday.

“The leg cannot be saved. It is the cost of survival, and survival is more than just physical at this point,” Daniel wrote in a GoFundMe.

Despite what he has endured, he has done it with positivity and is grateful for all those who have rallied around him and his family.

Hardships

Leading up to Daniel’s accident, he and his wife, Mardie, along with their three children, had faced recent tragedy. Mardie had a sister who suffered from congenital heart defects her entire life. She had been through three heart transplants.

“The third heart transplant resulted in a stroke, and that stroke ultimately took her life. That was in 2020,” Daniel said.

The death led to a series of deep depression in Mardie’s father, and he died by suicide in December 2024, Daniel said.

“It’s been a very traumatic year for our whole family. All of my sisters and I are seeking counseling for that,” Mardie told EastIdahoNews.com.

The incident

Then, the unthinkable happened to Daniel this year.

On Jan. 25, he went to catalog his father-in-law’s belongings at his home in Blackfoot. Mardie was there with him, including other family members.

Daniel found a homemade, double-barreled, sawed-off shotgun. It was in pieces and in a box. He tried to move it.

“I was simply setting it on the floor when it exploded,” Daniel recalled.

As a result, the firearm had injured his leg. 911 was called. Mardie and everyone present were all giving aid. He lost a lot of blood and in those moments, he was saying goodbye to his wife.

“I remember my wife’s face as she knelt beside me. Her hands pressed against the wound. She believed she was watching her husband die. I believed she was right,” Daniel wrote. “I apologized to my wife repeatedly. I told her I loved her.”

A tourniquet was applied before Blackfoot Police officers arrived on the scene.

Blackfoot Police Department Capt. Wes Wheatley said officers responded to a report of a man with a gunshot wound to the leg at 1:40 p.m. They began providing aid for what appeared to be a “life-threatening injury.”

“The tourniquet officers carry as part of their standard equipment played a critical role in enabling them to provide immediate aid before medical personnel arrived,” Wheatley said.

Blackfoot Fire and EMS arrived, along with deputies from the Bingham County Sheriff’s Office to assist.

By the time Daniel was transported to the hospital, he had multiple tourniquets on him.

“That’s probably the most pain I have been in in my entire life, is the application of those tourniquets,” he said.

An investigation was conducted into the circumstances surrounding the incident and it was determined to be accidental, Wheatley added.

The hospital

He said he was driven by ambulance to a rest area on Interstate 15 between Blackfoot and Idaho Falls. An air ambulance came, and he was given a blood transfusion. He was then airlifted to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls.

Daniel went through a series of lifesaving surgeries. His femoral artery was destroyed, and his femur was shattered into countless pieces. He stayed in the hospital for about a month.

“The surgical notes told me later that my blood pressure fell to a number that should not sustain life,” Daniel wrote.

Mardie said her husband is lucky to be alive and she is thankful to the officers and hospital staff.

“We call it a blessing. I don’t know if you believe in a God, but we’re very faith-driven. One hundred percent there were angels in that room that allowed him to still be alive because it was very close,” she said. “Those police officers who were first on scene saved Danny’s life. They are the hope that we call on for help when we need it, and they were definitely that for us that day.”

Progress

The last several months haven’t come easily. Daniel has had 10 surgeries throughout the year, and the amputation will be his 11th operation. He has fought infection in his leg too.

However, he has made significant progress.

“He couldn’t stand. He couldn’t let alone walk. We had to go through a lot of physical therapy in the hospital,” Mardie said. “And we’ve progressed to him being able to walk with a walker, one-legged.”

It was hard for him to brush his teeth and take a shower. He was out of work for six months, then returned part-time in June, where he could sit a little more comfortably. He resumed working full time in August.

Daniel has used a wheelchair as well. Currently, he is walking by wearing a brace to stabilize his ankle and has forearm crutches.

“It’s called an ankle foot orthotic that braces his foot. There is no feeling in his lower leg. There’s no function. It holds his ankle and his foot in place,” Mardie said.

Daniel is hoping the amputation will help him regain his ability. There were major wounds on both the top and bottom sides of his thigh. The extensive damage to the muscles, nerves, and arteries is what has affected his entire leg.

The below-the-knee amputation is taking place due to the lack of blood flow and nerve function. He just wants to move forward with life.

“I am trying to get into the outdoors. I am an avid hiker. I have hiked all over the country, and I just want to try to get back to those things I love. So this amputation is an attempt to give me more function in my lower leg,” Daniel said.

There’s a risk with it since he can’t feel his leg. He could potentially rub a hole in it that creates an infection risk, and he would never be able to feel it. But it’s something that he will have to check frequently.

“It’s a risk I am willing to take to kind of return to normal activity,” he said.

The GoFundMe

The Bradshaws have an active GoFundMe for fundraising to cover medical expenses. Daniel will need to get a prosthetic after his surgery, which can cost up to $100,000. He said insurance typically covers one prosthetic foot. But there are additional ones that are paid out-of-pocket.

“Most amputees will have two to three different kinds of feet for different purposes. For example, I like to weight lift, and the type of foot you would need to do weightlifting is a different foot than you would use for jogging, which is a different foot than you would use for hiking,” Daniel said.

The donations throughout the year have helped with surgeries, equipment, and therapies. Both Mardie and Daniel have been grateful for the support.

“We are very humbled by the number of people who have just stepped up to help us,” she said.

Lessons

Daniel told EastIdahoNews.com one of the greatest lessons learned is to have love for others. There is goodness in humanity, and people often show up for one another. He has additionally learned patience and is thankful for the help he has received.

“Relying on so many around me, my family and even strangers to do the work for me is humbling. I’ve had to learn to accept that service and that grace that others are so willing to extend to me,” he said. “And I’ve just learned to be positive all the time.”

“I learned the physical lesson that you should treat every weapon as if it’s loaded, even if you’ve been told it’s unloaded,” he added.

He wrote on GoFundMe that he will face the operating room with gratitude, rather than bitterness.

“I will honor the second chance I was given,” he wrote. “Donate blood. Hold your family close. Reach out to someone you love. Give kindness freely. It may save someone’s life. It certainly saved mine.”