A nine-year-old girl has been left injured after a bison charged towards her and threw her in the air at Yellowstone National Park, USA,
In the shocking video, taken by an 18-year-old onlooker, the bison is seen running towards the girl before flinging her into the air.
The girl was at the national park on Tuesday when the incident happened. According to witnesses, a group of approximately 50 people were within 1.5 to 3 metres the bison for at least 20 minutes before eventually causing the bison to charge the group.
In a statement released by the park on Tuesday, they said: ‘A nine-year-old girl from Odessa, FL was charged and tossed into the air by the bull bison. The girl was taken to the Old Faithful Lodge by her family where she was assessed and treated by a park emergency medical providers, and later taken to and released from the Old Faithful Clinic.’
The incident was filmed by Hailey Dayton, 18, who was visiting the park on a family road trip.
‘My brother and I were looking at the hot springs, and we saw a bunch of people running down the path to the bridge. We saw through the trees some people petting the bison, super close,’ she told NBC News on Wednesday.
Yellowstone Park says it is investigating the incident, but added that visitors should leave animals with at least 23 metres of space around them.