HAVERHILL, Mass. — Police want the public to stay vigilant after a man was attacked by a coyote in Haverhill on Friday.
It happened around 6:30 p.m. on Briarwood Road as neighbors prepared for a child’s birthday party.
“I’ve never seen a coyote before; this was actually the first time,” Yolanda Delgado said.
Yolanda tells Boston 25 News that her husband, Julio, was attacked by the coyote.
A video was taken by the victim’s neighbor roughly three hours before the attack. It shows what is believed to be the same coyote biting a chair and a child’s basketball hoop in the backyard.
Yolanda said she was carrying her neighbor’s two-year-old, Remi, when they saw the coyote staring from about 10 to 15 feet away.
“I was placing her on the floor, and she pointed out like I don’t know if it was ‘look’ or ‘doggy’, but when she did that, my first reaction was to look up,” Yolanda explained.
Yolanda said Julio told her to run as he tried to distract the coyote and take its attention off the two.
“Once he did that, it just ran towards Julio,” Yolanda said. “In that moment he fell, and when he fell, it was just on him.”
Neighbor Katie Murphy, baby Remi’s mom, said her husband saw the coyote on top of Julio and grabbed a folding chair to try to stop it from attacking further.
“I mean it’s bravery,” Murphy said. “He said he’s glad his fight-or-flight kicked in, and fight was his initial reaction.”
Yolanda said the coyote eventually became still before it got up and ran away.
“He had the stare of predatory, like I’m going to attack,” she said.
Although covered in scratches and bruises, Yolanda said Julio was not bitten and is expected to be OK. Julio went to the hospital after the attack, where they treated him with rabies and tetanus shots out of precaution.
“He’s in pain, a combination of the shots, as well as him hitting the floor and all the scratches and bumps,” Yolanda said.
After the intense moments and thanks to Julio’s actions, baby Remi is OK too.
“I think she was blissfully unaware,” said Murphy.
Haverhill police said the rogue coyote was hit by two vehicles after the attack and was last seen entering a wooded area.
Police used a drone to try to track down the coyote but had no luck locating it. Police believe the coyote is now deceased but said while that’s unconfirmed, they want residents to use extra caution when going outside.
Yolanda and her neighbors also want others in the area to be aware of what happened.
“Just keep your kids, keep your pets inside,” Murphy said.
“At this point we just need to be very mindful and just look very vigilant,” Yolanda said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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