Photo: Francis Apesteguy/Getty
The Rancho San Antonio County Park and Open Space Preserve in Santa Clara County, California remains closed after the terrifying incident, which unfolded on Sunday morning around 10 a.m., according to a statement from theMidpeninsula Regional Open Space.
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Prior to confirming the animal’s breed, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and Midpen rangers said they were “investigating the incident and attempting to locate and positively identify the mountain lion.”
“Rancho San Antonio County Park and Open Space Preserve is closed until further notice, and will reopen when the investigation is finished and Midpen determines it is safe to do so,” officials added.
Speaking to ABC affiliateKGO, MidPeninsula Regional Open Space District ranger Brad Pennington confirmed that the victim was a 6-year-old girl who was walking with her parents, four other adults, and four children when the attack happened.
“It came out of the bushes and right about when it grabbed a hold of the girl and an adult pushed the mountain lion and it ran off,” Pennington told KGO, adding that her injuries included “a couple punctured wounds to her calf.”
“She was also treated for minor first aid and then her parents took her to the hospital,” Pennington told the outlet.
Once captured, they will run DNA tests on the girl and wild animal to confirm its identity before determining what to do with it, Captain Todd Tognazzini with the Department of Fish and Wildlife told the outlet.
“We will immobilize the cat and put it in a large trap so it come to it. But prior to that, we will take DNA samples from it so we can make sure we have the correct cat,” Tognazzini said. “I know that we wouldn’t leave the cat here.”
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Park rangers told KGO that on the day of the attack, the preserve had filled its parking lot with 300 cars, making it one the busiest days of the season.
Despite the influx of visitors, the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space spokesperson said mountain lions typically do not attack humans.
Though officials work to “minimize conflicts between wildlife and people,” there are cases like Sunday’s where visitors may encounter a mountain lion.
In those events, officials advise people to stay calm, “make yourself large and loud,” and slowly back away from the wild animal, before reporting the sighting to the preserve’s rangers.
source: people.com
