NBC

Nebraska Farmer Amputates His Own Leg After It Gets Caught in Machinery: ‘I Guess I'm Stubborn'

The entire ordeal lasted about five minutes

Kurt Kaser was working on his Nebraska farm when he found himself in a terrifying situation. As Kaser was unloading corn, his leg got stuck in a piece of farm equipment. Alone and realizing he had to quickly make a decision, Kaser used a pocketknife to amputate his own leg to free himself, NBC News reports.

“I thought for sure I would pass out, and somehow something told me to keep going,” he told NBC News in a phone interview Tuesday of the accident that occurred near the end of April. “I did what I thought I had to do, and it worked.”

After he cut himself free from the corn hopper, Kaser crawled to his house about 150 feet away and called 911. He was rushed to a hospital and later airlifted to another hospital where his daughter works.

After a week in the hospital and another two weeks recovering at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln, he was released Friday.

When asked how he has been able to remain positive about the situation, Kaser joked that it's because of his headstrong ways.“I guess I’m stubborn. I don’t want to give up," he said.

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