In a tragic incident, a 59-year-old woman lost her life after being trampled by a group of cows while out walking her dog, a coroner revealed during a recent hearing.
The woman, identified as Rebecca Jane Hitchings, was taking her dog for a walk on Exmoor in Devon when the unfortunate encounter with the cows occurred. She resided in Woodcombe near Minehead, Somerset, and passed away in a hospital in Plymouth following the incident.
Upon discovery in a field, Ms. Hitchings was found to have sustained severe injuries and was subsequently airlifted to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, where attempts to save her proved unsuccessful.
The official cause of death was determined to be hemorrhagic shock resulting from blunt trauma, with the date of her passing recorded as Thursday, 16th October.
The coroner’s inquest has been adjourned for a comprehensive hearing at a later date, likely to be transferred to the Somerset coroner as per Senior Devon coroner Philip Spinney’s statement.
This incident follows a recent case in Austria where an 85-year-old hiker was fatally trampled by cows while accompanied by his wife and dog. The elderly couple was attacked by a group of nine cows as they were heading towards a mountain hut in Ramsau am Dachstein, Styria province.
Witnesses to the Austrian incident reported that the cows appeared to have been startled by the couple’s dog, leading to the sudden attack. Good Samaritans from the area rushed to assist the couple, who were then transported to a hospital in Salzburg for treatment.
Tragically, the man succumbed to his injuries before he could undergo emergency surgery, prompting a police investigation into the circumstances surrounding his untimely death.
Authorities caution individuals to exercise caution when in cow-populated fields, especially when accompanied by dogs that may agitate the animals and provoke aggressive behavior.
In a separate incident earlier this year in China, a farmer tragically lost his life after being fatally crushed by one of his cows during feeding time. The elderly farmer was feeding his animals when one of them charged at him, pinning him against a wall and continuing to attack him even as he lay injured.
The distressing event occurred in central China on Friday, April 11, with reports indicating that the victim had entered the cowshed for his daily feeding routine.
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