Man loses fingers in garden mulcher

A Turangi man may lose all the fingers on his right hand after it got caught in a garden mulcher.

The man lost two or three fingers and damaged his hand in the mulcher trying to free a branch that had become stuck , Youthtown Trust rescue helicopter pilot Mark Funnell said.

The 59-year-old's surviving fingers were so badly damaged it was possible he might loose them all, Mr Funnell told NZPA.

He believed the man, who had been working at a private address in the central North Island town, was right handed.

He was taken to a local medical centre before the helicopter flew him to Waikato Hospital to see a plastics specialist.

He did well during the flight, Mr Funnell said.

"He had had some pain relief so he wasn't in a great deal of discomfort, but I imagine in the peak of it, when it first happened, it was reasonably sore for him."

- NZPA