Bison attack visitors in North Dakota and Wyoming national parks
FILE - In this May 24, 2017, file photo, a bison grazes in Theodore Roosevelt National Park in western North Dakota. A bison “severely injured” a woman on Saturday, July, 15, 2023, in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the National Park Service said in a news release Tuesday, July 18. (AP Photo/Blake Nicholson, File)
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A bison severely injured a Minnesota woman on Saturday in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the National Park Service said in a statement on Tuesday.
Park officials reported she was in serious but stable condition after suffering “significant injuries to her abdomen and foot.”
The woman was taken to a Fargo hospital after being transported by ambulance to a hospital in Dickinson, about 30 miles (48.28 kilometers) east of Painted Canyon, a colorful Badlands vista popular with motorists, where she was injured at a trailhead.
The attack is under investigation; exact details are unknown. Park Superintendent Angie Richman did not immediately respond to an email requesting information.
On Monday, a bison charged and gored a 47-year-old Phoenix woman in Yellowstone National Park. She sustained significant injuries to her chest and abdomen and was taken by helicopter to an Idaho Falls hospital.
Park officials reminded visitors that bison are large, powerful and wild, and can turn quickly and easily outrun people. Bulls can be aggressive during the rutting season from mid-July through August. Park regulations require visitors stay at least 25 yards (23 meters) away from large animals.