3 camp counselors injured in Connecticut Park Bobcat attack

Three adult camp counselors who led a group of youth campers at a Connecticut state park were treated Friday for non-life-threatening injuries after fighting and killing a bobcat that attacked one of them, officials said.

One of the handlers was sleeping in a hammock on Selden Neck Island early Friday morning when the animal attacked him, the state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said in a statement.

“The man and two other adults then killed the bobcat,” the department said. It was unclear how.

The department’s environmental protection police responded to the attack on the park, which is about five miles west of Lyme, Conn., and is accessible only from the water.

All three adults were taken to a hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Details of their injuries and condition were not immediately available.

The bobcat was taken to the State Public Health lab and tested positive for rabies.

None of the campers had contact with the bobcat, officials said. The local fire department and police evacuated all campers from the island.

The Ministry of Energy and the Environment is investigating the episode.

The counselors led a group of youth campers enrolled in the state’s Wilderness School, a year-round program for people ages 13 to 21 who have had traumatic experiences or need additional support.

The program offers expeditions ranging from one to 20 days, including hiking, camping, and canoeing.

Speaking of the three advisers, Michael Williams, the deputy commissioner of operations for Connecticut, said in a statement: “Thanks to their valiant and extraordinary efforts, the youth’s safety was maintained and they were not harmed.”

Connecticut had a bounty on bobcats, from 1935 to 1971, but as deforestation later reduced their habitat, the animal was considered a protected furbearer in 1972 with no hunting or trapping seasons, according to a fact sheet issued by the state.

Their numbers appear to have increased throughout Connecticut in recent years, it said.

Peter Yazbak, a spokesperson for the Connecticut Department of Children and Families, said that, to his knowledge, Friday’s episode marked the first time a Wilderness School expedition had such an encounter with a wild animal.

“It could have been worse,” he said. “We are happy that everyone is doing well.”