GEORGETOWN, Calif. — A mountain lion attacked two brothers in Northern California on Saturday, killing one and injuring another, authorities said.
The big cat killed a 21-year-old man and injured his 18-year-old brother at about 1:13 p.m. PDT, The Sacramento Bee reported. The mountain lion was later tracked down and killed, the El Dorado Sheriff’s Office said.
The sheriff’s office said the 18-year-old man suffered “traumatic injuries” to his face and had been separated from his brother during the attack, according to KCRA-TV. Paramedics arrived at the scene at about 1:34 p.m. PDT to assist the victim.
Authorities located the mountain lion crouched next to the 21-year-old man at about 1:46 p.m., according to the television station. They fired their weapons to scare off the big cat.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene.
The siblings were in the hilly, forested area searching for deer antler sheds, according to the Bee.
According to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the last verified fatal attack by a mountain lion occurred in January 2004 at Whiting Ranch Regional Park in Orange County. Mark Reynolds, 35, had stopped to fix his bicycle chain when he was attacked, the Bee reported.
The last fatal attack in Northern California occurred in the Auburn State Recreation Area in El Dorado County on April 23, 1994. Barbara Schoener, 40, was attacked in Auburn Lake Trails.
At the time, Schoener was the first person killed by a mountain lion in California since 1909, the Bee reported.
Mountain lions are protected by law from being hunted in California, and have been designated as a specially protected mammal since the passage of Proposition 117 in 1990, according to the newspaper.