2020 just seems like one horrible downer after the next, and now Buddy Valastro is the latest victim of this cursed year. The Cake Boss star’s dominant right hand was impaled in a freak bowling accident at his home, and he’s not going to have use of it any time soon. The 43-year-old shared a photo to his Instagram on Sept. 26, showing him in a hospital bed with his right hand heavily bandaged and elevated above his body.
“I was involved in a terrible accident a few days ago…What do you think of my new accessory,” the Carlo’s Bakery owner wrote in the caption, while his face looked pained and sad in the photo. He was wearing a hospital gown and had an IV drip attached to his left hand.
The accident occurred on Sun. Sept. 20 while Buddy was trying to fix a pinsetter in the bowling alley inside of his family’s New Jersey home. “There was a malfunction with the bowling pinsetter, a common fix in the past, but turned into a terrible accident,” Buddy’s rep tells PEOPLE.
“After trying to release the bowling pin from the cage mechanism, his right hand became lodged and compressed inside the unit. Unable to remove his hand, he can see a 1-1/2″ metal rod slowly and repeatedly impale his hand three times between his ring finger and middle finger,” they continued.
Fortunately Buddy’s sons Buddy Jr., 16, and Marco, 13, were able to come to their dad’s rescue and used a reciprocating saw “to cut through the metal rod and relieve his father from the machine,” according to the rep. As a result of Buddy’s impaled hand, he’s since had two surgeries. The famed baker is now recovering at home after being released from the hospital on Wednesday, the same day he share the photo of the accident aftermath to his Instagram. Sadly, this accident is going to be keeping him out of the kitchen for some time to come. “It will be an uphill battle as it’s Buddy’s dominant right hand and he will need prolonged recovery and therapy,” Buddy’s rep told the publication.
Celebrity baker Duff Goldman — who has competed against Buddy on their bake-off decorating show Buddy vs. Duff — told his pal in the comments, “Get better homie. You’re gonna need that hand.” Food Network chef Alex Guarnaschelli added, “Those hands are a national treasure and so are you! Get well soon,” and celeb chef Emeril Lagasse wrote, “Get better quick my friend!.” Most recently, Buddy baked and decorated superfan Gigi Hadid‘s 25th birthday cake during quarantine in April. It came in the form of a giant lifelike everything bagel, which she had been craving and eating every day during her pregnancy.