A WOMAN who was shot in the leg by her husband in a freak accident at a Suffolk lake has undergone surgery on her serious injuries.

Craig Robinson

A WOMAN who was shot in the leg by her husband in a freak accident at a Suffolk lake has undergone surgery on her serious injuries.

Mandy Hudson was taken to Ipswich Hospital on Saturday night following the incident at Bromeswell Lakes, near Woodbridge.

The 49-year-old had been with her husband Jon as he carried out a routine patrol for fish predators. It is understood the accident happened when he tripped on a rabbit hole - as he fell, it caused the shotgun he was carrying to discharge, hitting his wife in the ankle.

Distraught Mr Hudson, leaseholder at the lakes, was last night said to still be coming to terms with the accident.

Cliff Roberts, the bailiff at the fishery and a family friend, said: “Obviously Jon is devastated. He is such a quiet and unassuming man - very easy to get on with.

“He did come down to the lake this morning. I went down early to make sure he didn't but he was already there.

“I spoke to him for a few minutes just to assure him we were doing all we could and that there was no need for him to be there. His place is with his family.”

Mr Roberts, who lost a leg in an accident on his boat 21 years ago, said Mrs Hudson was in a stable condition and was due to have surgery on her ankle yesterday morning.

“As yet I don't know how it's gone but the hospital have said she is in a stable condition,” the 65-year-old continued. “We're keeping our fingers crossed and praying that it is successful. I can well appreciate how Mandy must be feeling.

“It is a very tragic occurrence. He had the safety catch on, but had the gun cocked open over his arm.

“I have no idea how the gun went off. Somehow it snapped shut and went off when he fell over.”

He added: “We have a lot of Canada geese down here and a heron and we try to scare them off by firing a gun.”

Paramedics were dispatched to the lakes but called police to make the scene safe before they tended to Mrs Hudson.

A spokesman for Suffolk police confirmed it was an accident but said they had taken the weapon away while they assessed the situation.