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Residents of a New Hampshire suburb have been warned to be on the lookout for a mysterious wild animal that has been terrorising the neighbourhood — and it could have rabies.
The police department in the town of Lebanon have received reports of three attacks occurring in the Centerra Park area since Sunday, August 30, with the unidentified creature described as ‘unusually aggressive’.
One horrifying encounter was caught on camera and shows the animal running out of a grassy area into a car park, before darting under a U-Haul lorry and appearing to lunge at the driver as they left the vehicle.
The creature is then seen jumping up at the driver, who tries to ward it off using an object in their hands but the animal rips it away before latching on to the person’s leg.
They eventually manage to shake it off, as another person jumps out of its way, with the animal running back under the van before it retreats to the woods.
Since the initial report, the Police Department has received information regarding two additional attacks involving what appears to be the same wild animal, they wrote on their Facebook page.
They have warned the public not to approach the creature, saying it has ‘reportedly displayed unusually aggressive behaviour towards people’ and have advised locals to exercise caution if ‘walking near wooded brush-covered or other areas where wildlife may be present’.
While they have been unable to confirm what type of animal it is, witnesses have suggested it could be either a gray fox or a fisher — which is a carnivorous member of the weasel family.
However, its aggressive behaviour has sparked fears that it could be suffering from rabies.
‘It’s concerning because of the animal attacking people,’ LPD Chief Phillip Roberts told local channel KMBC. ‘And then, you know, the fact that it’s coming out and scratching and biting at people. That’s obviously a concern to us.’
Rabies can be transmitted to humans via the bite or scratch of an infected animal, or through infected saliva entering the eyes, nose or mouth.
The virus, which can cause fever, nausea, vomiting, hallucinations and partial paralysis is almost always fatal in humans once symptoms appear — although it can be prevented if treatment is given promptly after exposure.
Police in Lebanon have said anyone who is bitten or scratched by a wild animal should wash the affected area with soap and water thoroughly and seek medical attention to determine whether rabies treatment is needed.
They added: ‘Anyone who encounters an aggressive wild animal should maintain a safe distance and contact police.’
The reports are the latest in a string of animal attacks which have swept parts of the US over the summer.
Most recently a Colorado woman in her 80s suffered abdominal injuries after a bear broke into her home in the middle of the night and attacked her in the kitchen.
The bear entered the woman’s home in Estes Park through a first-floor window at around 4.30am on August 27.
The homeowner woke up to discover the animal in her kitchen on the second floor.
She told officials the bear charged her, ‘scratched her across the stomach and knocked her to the ground’ before leaving through the same window it entered through.
It’s one of a string of incidents across the area, with multiple reports of bears breaking into houses and vehicles.
Authorities have said it is due largely to their natural food shortages being depleted by low mountain snowpack, wildfires and drought, leading them to take greater risks to secure food as they enter hyperphagia when they build up necessary fat reserves to survive hibernation.
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