Fox attack in Tyrone sends 2 to hospital Monday

An employee of a Palmetto Road business and a customer of another were both bitten Monday afternoon by a fox that was subsequently killed by Tyrone police officers responding to the scene. Those bitten were treated at Piedmont Fayette Hospital.

Police Chief Brandon Perkins said the mid-afternoon incident occurred when an employee of Tyrone Power Equipment encountered the fox while walking between two buildings. The fox jumped up and bit him in the arm, Perkins said.

Police were called as the fox ran into a building and under some pallets, Perkins said. The fox was surrounded with men holding fire extinguishers, setting off the spray to keep the fox at bay, he said.

But the fox escaped temporarily and attacked another man, biting him on the lower back, said Perkins. The man was a customer at Walter’s Auto.

Perkins said an officer approached the man, ready to strike the fox with the butt of his shotgun, when the fox let go and ran off into another part of the building. The fox a few minutes later acted like it was going to come toward the officers and was shot.

The employee at Tyrone Power Equipment and the Walter’s Auto customer were taken to Piedmont Fayette Hospital for treatment. The fox carcass is in possession of Fayette County Animal Control for rabies testing.