Meghan Markle’s father, Thomas Markle, has undergone surgery to amputate his left leg and is now in intensive care, according to his son.

Thomas, 81, had the limb removed below the knee on Wednesday, Dec. 3, after a blood clot in his thigh reportedly cut off circulation. According to the Daily Mail, the three-hour procedure took place in the Philippines, where the retired lighting director relocated with his son earlier this year.

His son, Thomas Markle Jr., told the outlet, “My dad is being very brave. His foot turned blue then black. It happened very quickly. I took him to a local hospital and they did some scans and an ultrasound and said the leg had to be amputated.”

Thomas Markle steps out of his Rosarito residence; Meghan, Duchess of Sussex speaks onstage during the Breaking Barriers, Shaping Narratives: How Women Lead On and Off the Screen panel

Dsanchez/CPR / BACKGRID; Astrida Valigorsky/Getty

“There was no option,” he added. “I was told the leg had to be removed and it was a case of life or death.”

A representative for the Duchess of Sussex had no comment. PEOPLE has also reached out to Thomas Markle Jr. for comment.

Thomas Markle in Mexico on March 13, 2024

Thomas Markle in Rosarito, Mexico, in March 2024.BACKGRID

Thomas is said by his son to be recovering in an intensive care ward at the hospital. “One of his doctors said the next two or three days are critical,” Thomas Jr. told the Daily Mail. “His left leg has been removed below the knee. They were worried about infection setting in — sepsis or gangrene.”

Thomas has faced ongoing health issues in recent years and reportedly suffered a stroke in 2022.

Meghan, 44, has been estranged from her father since her 2018 royal wedding to Prince Harry, following his admission that he staged paparazzi photos with a British tabloid and, according to Meghan, lied to her about speaking to the press. (He later expressed regret over the incident, saying in 2021, “I wish I hadn’t done the whole thing.”) Thomas ultimately pulled out of attending the wedding, and the then–Prince Charles walked Meghan down the aisle at St. George’s Chapel.

A frail looking Thomas Markle is mum on his daughter, Meghan Markle as he seen in a wheel chair as he catches a flight out of Los Angles with his son, Thomas Jr. on Tuesday.

Thomas Markle in LAX in March 2023.LionsShareNews / BACKGRID

In her 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan spoke candidly about the breakdown of her relationship with her father, saying, “I’ve lost my father.” She recalled confronting him about the staged paparazzi photos, explaining, “We called my dad and I asked him… He said, ‘No, absolutely not.’ ”

The Truth About Meghan Markle’s Dad — and the Letter She Wrote Him After the Wedding

Meghan said she urged him to be honest, so she could help: “I said, ‘If you tell me the truth, we can help,’ and he wasn’t able to do that. And that, for me, has really resonated, especially now as a mother.” She added that she “can’t imagine” intentionally causing pain to her own children, making the rift difficult to reconcile.

In their 2022 Harry & Meghan docuseries, Harry said he “shouldered” some of the blame for the fallout. “She had a father before this and now she doesn’t have a father,” he said, adding, “If Meg wasn’t with me, then her dad would still be her dad.”

Meghan Sussex in With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration

Meghan Markle in ‘With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration’.Jake Rosenberg/Netflix

News of Thomas’s health comes as the latest installment of Meghan’s Netflix lifestyle series, With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration, premiered on Dec. 3. The special offers a glimpse into how Meghan and Harry are creating their own traditions in Montecito, Calif. Throughout, Meghan highlights the family rituals she’s building with their children, Prince Archie, 6 and Princess Lilibet, 4 — crafting advent calendars and cooking the Christmas Eve gumbo she learned from her mother, Doria Ragland.