Nevada governor breaks pelvis in horse accident, will have surgery in Reno on Wednesday

Nevada gov to have pelvis surgery after horse fall

RENO, Nev. — Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons is scheduled to undergo surgery for a broken pelvis Wednesday after he was bucked from a horse at a private ranch north of Reno.

Gibbons’ spokesman Daniel Burns initially indicated the governor had broken his hip, but he told The Associated Press in an e-mail just before noon: “It’s actually his pelvis. Broken in at least two places.”

Burns says doctors expect the surgery to take about 90 minutes. He says the governor is in pain but he is coherent and looking forward to a full recovery.

The 65-year-old governor was thrown from the horse late Tuesday afternoon while riding with his brother north of Pyramid Lake, about an hour north of Reno.

Gibbons was elected in 2006 but he was defeated by Brian Sandoval in this year’s Republican primary.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

RENO, Nev. (AP) — Gov. Jim Gibbons broke a hip in two places when he was bucked by a horse at a private ranch in northern Nevada, and he was scheduled to undergo surgery Wednesday, his spokesman said.

Daniel Burns, the governor’s communications director, said he talked with his boss just after 10 a.m.

“He is coherent. He is laughing, though not a lot because it hurts to laugh,” Burns told The Associated Press. “He is looking forward to a full recovery.”

Surgery was planned sometime Wednesday, though the exact time was not being released, Burns said.

“The doctor told me hips are like a pretzel. They don’t break in one place. If it breaks in one place it has to break in another place,” Burns said.

Any gubernatorial duties while the Republican governor is in surgery will be handled by Sen. Michael Schneider, the Democratic president pro tempore of the Senate, because Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki is out of the country.

Doctors said Gibbons, who was elected in 2006, will be hospitalized at least until Friday. Rehabilitation will take about three months, which means Gibbons will be on the mend through the end of his term. He was defeated by Brian Sandoval in the June Republican primary.

Burns said the governor was with his brother when the accident happened around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday north of Pyramid Lake, about an hour’s drive from Reno.

“He was getting on the horse and throwing his other leg over it when the horse spooked and took off,” Burns said. His foot was briefly caught in the stirrup, and the governor was kicked in the chest as he fell.

Gibbons was taken by ambulance to Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno.

Burns said Gibbons was “looking forward to riding horses again, including that one.”

Associated Press Writer Sandra Chereb in Carson City contributed to this report.