Woman attacked and killed by herd of cows in Austria
On a birthday trip with her daughters in Austria, a woman was attacked and killed by a herd of cows. The 40-year-old local woman had been hiking with her 20 and 23-year-old daughters and two small dogs near Bad Hofgastein in the Alps, according to the police statement made on Thursday. All three women were attacked by the herd during the outing on Wednesday - the daughters were able to get to safety despite injuries.
However, the mother, who was celebrating her birthday on that day, could not free herself from the herd. The daughters called for emergency response teams, but they could not initially do anything against the animals. Only the pilot of the helicopter sent to help was able to drive away the cow herd with his machine. However, this was too late for the 40-year-old woman - she succumbed to her injuries on the spot.
Cow attacks on people are extremely rare in Austria. The mountain rescue service in Salzburg warned of possible dangers arising from dogs carried by hikers, which could be perceived as a threat by the cows. "Special caution is required when not only mother cows but also young calves are on the alpine pastures. The mother instinct of cows is strong and they protect their calves," explained the mountain rescue service to the news agency APA.
Whether the dogs played a role in the attack remained unclear initially. The two daughters were taken to the hospital by helicopter. They were in shock and were initially only questioned by the police for a short time.
- While celebrating her birthday trip in Austria, the woman was killed by a herd of cows during an outing in the Alps, despite her daughters managing to escape with injuries.
- The next day, the mountain rescue service warned that dogs carried by hikers could provoke cow attacks, emphasizing the need for caution when mother cows and calves are on alpine pastures due to the strong maternal instinct of cows.
