A woman on a First Nations reserve near Kamloops died Saturday night after being mauled by a dog at her home.
Community leaders identified the victim as village elder Kathleen Green. She was in her seventies, and was a residential school survivor who lived alone with her grandson, according to residents.
The dog’s breed has not been confirmed, but it belonged a family member of Green.
“They are deeply saddened and shocked by the tragedy that took place,” said family spokeswoman Katy Gottfriedson.
“They ask that the community and other media respect their privacy at this time as they are mourning their mother, their grandmother, sister and aunt,” she said.
Emergency crews were on scene, and were forced to shoot the dog after it continued being aggressive.
A councillor with the Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc band confirmed the death to Global News, and said the community has come together to support the family.
BC Coroners Service has confirmed they are aware of the incident and are investigating. Coroner Barb McLintock said fatal dog maulings are very rare and that this case has raised many questions.
“Sometimes it can just be almost, in a sense, bad luck as to what would make an attack fatal or not fatal, so we need to do a lot of work before we know what might have led this to actually become a fatality,” McLintock said.
– With files from The Canadian Press