The family of two California brothers attacked by a mountain lion over the weekend say they are heartbroken over the loss of 21-year-old Tyren, but thankful they did not lose their two sons. .
Tyren Brooks died after being attacked by a wild animal, but his 18-year-old brother Wyatt Brooks was left with large lacerations to his face and neck after being attacked in a remote area of the Northern California foothills on Saturday afternoon. Survived.
“While we are all devastated by the tragic loss of Taylen, we are grateful that Wyatt is still with us and that the outcome could have been much worse. We are fully aware of this,” the Brooks-Welsh family said in a statement shared by the local sheriff’s office.
The brothers, who were “as close as brothers,” were walking down a dirt road in search of an antler shed in Kelsey near the town of Georgetown when the mountain lion attacked them, according to the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office. In the incident report, he began walking toward the scene.
The two men tried to scare the lion by raising their hands, yelling and throwing their backpacks at the lion.
But the beast lunged at Wyatt and clamped its jaws around his face, pinning him to the ground, the sheriff’s office said. Tyren began punching the animal, and Wyatt struggled with the animal on the ground, then pulled himself up and climbed on top of the animal.
The mountain lion began scratching Wyatt’s torso, causing his brother to let go.
The wild feline then ran away and chased Tyren, grabbing him by the throat with its teeth and slamming him to the ground, the sheriff said.
Wyatt, who suffered severe facial injuries, tried to no avail by punching the animal to free his brother.
He then tried to call 911, but was forced to go through the trouble of getting cell phone service to make the call, according to the incident report.
He walked back to his parked car, where he finally called 911, and then drove back to where he left his brother, but couldn’t find him or the mountain lion.
He then drove to meet El Dorado County Sheriff’s Deputies who treated Wyatt until medical personnel arrived, then searched the area for Tyren and Lion.
They found the animal crouched close to Mr. Tailen’s body and fired shots to scare the lion, being careful not to hit Mr. Tailen. The beast escaped, but Tailen was already dead, the report said.
Wyatt, who is training to be a firefighter, was rushed to a local hospital and then transferred to the University of California, Davis in Sacramento, where he underwent reconstructive surgery on his face and neck.
He has been discharged from the hospital and is currently recuperating at home.
The brothers’ family said the young men enjoyed hunting and fishing together almost every day, leading an “energetic lifestyle enjoying the outdoors.”
Tylen worked with his father to paint the house and cut firewood. His family said he loved fishing and was a talented guitarist.
Relatives wrote: “He was a very kind and gentle man and will be deeply missed by all who knew him.”
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife hired professional trappers to find and euthanize the mountain lion within hours of the deadly attack.
DNA analysis confirmed that the same lion was responsible for the attack, the ministry announced on Sunday. The lion was a male, weighing approximately 90 pounds, and was in good health.
Mountain lion attacks on humans are rare but do occur, the State Department said. The last deadly attack in California occurred in 2004.
