FALL RIVER, MASS. (WHDH) - A wild attack recently unfolded in Fall River where a coyote bit a woman while she was out walking her dog.
The incident happened on Monday shortly before 6 a.m.
“It’s very, very, very horrifying,” said one area community member.
Police said the 54-year-old victim came face-to-face with the coyote and picked up her dog. Then, police said, the coyote attacked her, biting her legs and her left arm.
Two men rushed to the rescue and were able to wrestle the coyote off the woman, who was taken to Rhode Island Hospital with serious injuries.
The coyote, meanwhile, wandered back into the woods and emerged on the other side of a set of train tracks at the Fall River Country Club, according to police.
At the country club, police said an employee told investigators the coyote tried to attack him while he was working the grounds. The employee fought the coyote off.
Responding officers then made the decision to shoot the animal.
“Anytime you have to make a decision to put any animal down whether it be a coyote or a deer that’s been struck in the roadway, it’s a difficult decision,” said Fall River Police Sergeant Moses Pereira. “Nobody wants to put an animal down.”
The injured woman remained in the hospital as of Tuesday afternoon.
In the meantime, some who lived in the area said they have been on edge since the incident Monday morning.
“I used to take my dog out late at night,” one man said. “Now, we don’t want to anymore just because we’re afraid of getting attacked.”
“People with dogs, people that are coming back and forth at night or very early in the morning need to be careful,” said Laurie Placeres.
Officials speaking with 7NEWS have shared advice for those potentially encountering coyotes, saying anyone who sees a coyote should make noise and get inside a car or house, if possible, until the animal leaves the area.
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