A few months ago, a couple of friends riding a bike in a forest east of Seattle were attacked by a cougar. The vicious animal killed one of the people and left the second seriously wounded. The big cat was found in a nearby tree later where it was shot and killed by the Fish and Wildlife police.
The man who survived explained the situation. He and his late friend went for a mountain hike near Lake Hancock and not long after they realized they were being followed by a cougar. The friends stopped and made a lot of noise to scare the cat away, but as soon as they stopped to catch their breath, the cougar attacked them. It latched onto the head of one of the friends, inflicting serious wounds.
Here’s a photo of the cougar that attacked two men on a mountain bike ride near North Bend today. One man died. Another man is at Harborview Medical Center tonight @komonews #komonews #Cougarattack pic.twitter.com/gVQSLL3CwB
— Tammy Mutasa (@TammyKOMO) May 20, 2018
The second 32-year old male started running away but the cat eventually caught up to him and killed him. The 31-year old injured man rode more than 3 km. before he got mobile coverage and asked for help.
According to Sgt. Ryan Abbott, rescuers needed about half an hour to find the victim after rescuing the injured man. After several hours of search, the cougar was located up a tree and shot by the officers.
Patient status update: The 31-year-old male who arrived at Harborview this afternoon as a result of a mountain lion attack near North Bend is being treated in the Emergency Dept. He is currently awake and alert and in serious condition.
— Harborview Medical Center (@harborviewmc) May 19, 2018
This was the second cougar fatality in nearly a century. However, due to the frequent attacks, many are calling for changes. Every year, the police allows 250 cougars to be hunted and killed in specially designated zones, but it seems that there are still too many of these protected animals.
