Forest guard among 9 injured in Lalmonirhat fox attack

Nine people, including a forest guard, were injured during an attack by foxes in Shalban at Hatibandha upazila of Lalmonirhat this afternoon.

The injured are now receiving treatments at Lalmonirhat Sadar Hospital, said Dr Sumaiya Akhter, a medical officer at the hospital emergency unit, reports our local correspondent.

There are signs of multiple injuries on the bodies of every victim, said the doctor said.

The injured are forest guard Khairul Islam, Abdul Jalil, Abdus Salam, Jahangir Alam, Binod Chandra, Subhash Chandra, Jahanara Begum, Ramicha Begum and Afroza Begum.

All of the injured people are residents of Nawdabas village near Shalban, said forest guard Khairul Islam.

Khairul Islam said while locals were walking through a road inside the forest this afternoon, six-seven foxes came out of the deep forest and suddenly attacked the pedestrians.

When he tried to chase the foxes, he was also attacked by the animals, the forest guard told our Lalmonirhat correspondent.

He and the locals fled the scene and took shelter in the forest department office, said Khairul said adding, there was no history of previsions such incidents like fox attacks in the Shalban area earlier.

Nurnabi Islam, a forest officer, said the foxes are living in the Shalban and are thought to have contracted rabies.

"We have closed the main gate of Shalban for now. Forest rangers have been warned in this regard. The matter was informed to the higher authorities. Necessary steps will be taken in this regard as per the instructions of the higher authorities," he said.