MADRID – A Phillips hunter who was shot by his nephew while hunting on Thanksgiving Day said he hopes to hunt with his nephew again as soon as he is able.

“It was one of those fluke things,” said Craig Mitchell, 40. “It was just one of those things – just a bad accident.”

Mitchell was shot in the thigh with a round from a .308-caliber rifle fired by his nephew, Brian Mitchell, 19. The younger Mitchell, also of Phillips, was reportedly shooting at a deer but hit his uncle instead.

The wounded man was taken to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington and later sent to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston where he was treated and released. Craig Mitchell said he’s doing fine, and he and his nephew both said they look forward to Maine’s muzzle-loading season. They may be hunting again as soon as Saturday.

Craig Mitchell was hunting with seven relatives, including Brian, at about 8:30 a.m. Thanksgiving day near Old Bray Hill Road when he was shot, said Deborah Turcotte, spokeswoman for the Maine Warden Service.

Mitchell said he never saw his nephew, “and I’m sure he could not see me.”

Maine wardens responded to the scene and recreated the incident by hanging orange to better understand what Brian could see. Craig Mitchell said the wardens could not see any bright colors where they were.

Turcotte said findings from the investigation, once complete, will be forwarded to the district attorney’s office, which will decide if any charges will be brought.

Maine’s hunting regulations require a shooter to be able to clearly identify a target and what may be immediately behind it before shooting.

“He was firing on a deer and I unfortunately was on the other side of it in some really thick stuff,” Craig Mitchell said. “The deer was between he and I.”

At first, it felt like he had been stung by a bee, Craig Mitchell said, but after recognizing the sound of the rifle’s report he realized he had been shot.

He was quite shaken up, but he used his belt to apply pressure on the wound, Mitchell said. His 10-year-old son was with the hunting party.

“(Brian) was a basket case, and I was more worried about him,” Mitchell said of his nephew. “This is what helped me get my focus and get us out. Once we had the original assessment, we controlled our emotions and calmed down and were ready to get out.”

Brian Mitchell said he unloaded his and his uncle’s rifles, and at that time, his uncle was calmer than he was. “Once we got him to walk, I knew we would be OK, but I was still shaken up,” Brian said.

The group reached their truck, called 911 and met with a NorthStar ambulance at the bank in downtown Phillips.

Brian Mitchell said the family would still get together, but they should look at doing some things differently.

“I think we’ll all become better hunters,” he said. “It really doesn’t matter how safe you think you are. You’re never safe enough and need to take all precautions.”