*Last update: 8:00 p.m.*
Sen. Patrick Leahy is recovering after a hip replacement surgery Thursday.
In a statement from the Senator's office released Thursday evening, press secretary David Carle said the procedure was successful and the senator is comfortably recovering at a Washington area hospital.
"Patrick and Marcelle are overwhelmed and humbled by the outpouring of support, and they are deeply grateful for all of the kind and encouraging messages they have received," Carle said.
Leahy was scheduled to undergo surgery Thursday morning to repair a broken hip after a fall at his house in Virginia Wednesday night.
In a statement released earlier Thursday, Carle cited Leahy's partial blindness as the reason for the fall.
"He has taken some remarkable dingers over the years but this one finally caught up with him," Carle said.
Leahy was born blind in one eye, and as a result has had a lifelong struggle with reduced depth perception.
According to the statement, Leahy's doctors determined the best course of action would be surgery to repair his hip as soon as possible.
Leahy is 82 years old. He’s served in the Senate for over four decades, and is in his final year in office.
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