A day after a coyote bit three people in a park in Springfield, Virginia, police said an officer was also bitten by a coyote and opened fire on it to stop the attack.
On Saturday, Animal Protection Police Officers went to Lake Accotink Park to investigate reports that three people had been bitten, police said. The victims were all adults and had injuries that were not considered life-threatening, police said.
The park was shut down and remained closed Sunday. Police said in late Sunday morning that a coyote had been seen near Carrleigh Parkway in Springfield, heading into Lake Accotink Park.
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Hours later, police said an officer was searching the woods near the 7900 block of Carrleigh Parkway when the officer was bitten by a coyote and fired their gun to end the attack. The coyote was found dead nearby, police said. It will be tested to see if it had rabies, police said.
The officer was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
It was not immediately clear whether this was the same coyote involved in the biting incidents from Saturday.
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Anyone who sees an abnormally aggressive coyote is asked to get away and call 911.
Stay with News4 for more on this developing story.
