After second attack in a week, national park staff reminds visitors to keep their distance from buffalo
For the second time in a week, a bison has attacked a child, but this time the injuries are more serious. A 17-year-old boy is recovering after a bison threw him 6 feet into the air and gored his thigh at Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. The teen was treated on site and then airlifted to a hospital in Bismarck. He is in stable condition.
This incident comes on the heels of another bison attack in Yellowstone National Park, where a 9-year-old girl was tossed into the air by a large bull.
According to ABC 17, the teen was walking along a trail in the park. When he walked between a male bison and the herd, the bull charged him from behind.
The teen, who has not been named, is an experienced hiker and says he knows to keep a safe distance, but that the bison charged out of nowhere.
"There was nothing that I did to aggravate him, and then all of the sudden, I kind of got this feeling that something was chasing me," he said, "And then he just throws me into the air."
Park staff remind visitors that bison are large, powerful and wild. They can turn quickly, and can easily outrun humans. In fact, according to the National Park Service, bison have injured more people in Yellowstone National Park than any other animal.
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