Much of the South Mountain Reservation was closed over the weekend and people were warned to keep pets and small children inside after a coyote attacked a girl and a dog on Friday.
The coyote bit a 13-year-old girl and a 1-year-old Maltese-Shih Tzu mix near the dog park in the reservation, according to a statement by Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr.
The teenager was taken to Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center for treatment, a spokeswoman for Essex County Sheriff’s Office said.
This was the first coyote attack on a person in New Jersey since 1999 when a woman walking several dogs in the Morris County town of Boonton was attacked. The coyote attacked the dogs but when the woman fell, the coyote bit her on the arm and did not run away until another person hit the coyote with a stick, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Immediately after the latest incident, the county Parks Department closed Crest Drive and the South Mountain Dog Park and began monitoring the area with park staff, Sheriff’s Officers and New Jersey Fish and Wildlife.
Under the recommendation of NJ Fish and Wildlife and in an abundance of caution to protect the safety of the public, Crest Drive, the dog park and all picnic and parking areas between South Orange Avenue and Glen Avenue, including Locust Grove, were ordered closed for five days. They are to be reopened on Thursday, July 6.
Turtle Back Zoo, Codey Arena and the Recreation Complex by the Reservoir were not affected and remained open.
Coyote sightings were reported during the weekend after the attack. The Maplewood Police Department issued a warning Saturday at about 9 p.m. about a possible coyote sighting in the area of Maplewood Avenue and Jefferson Avenue, not far from Maplewood village.
The dog that was attacked was severely injured while the 13-year-old girl, who was carrying the dog at the time of the attack, required stitches on her leg and rabies treatment, according to the dog’s owner, 18-year-old Giselle Romero.
Romero told WCBS-TV that the attack happened next to the South Mountain dog park.
“When it attacked her, she fell on the floor and then, obviously, the dog fell from her arm and then the coyote attacked her and then I was trying to get it from her, but then it, like, chased me, so I ran away from it,” Romero told WCBS-TV.
The Department of Environmental Protection says coyotes are common throughout New Jersey, but attacks on humans are extremely rare.
The latest statewide coyote population estimate from Fish and Wildlife’s Furbearer Research Project is 3,000 animals and the population is increasing. However, reports of coyote damage have remained fairly stable in recent years, according to DEP.
The DEP recommends making loud noises, throwing rocks, or spraying water to scare coyotes away.
If you observe coyotes in the daytime that show no fear of humans or if a coyote attacks a person, contact local police and NJ Fish and Wildlife at 908-735-8793; outside of normal business hours call the DEP Hotline at 877-WARN-DEP.
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