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Raccoons attack woman as she tries to wave them away

Staff photo by CHRIS URSO

Neighbors inspect raccoon traps and cages today in Lakeland. A 74-year-old woman is recovering from injuries she received after being attacked by five raccoons Saturday night, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said. Gretchen Whitted of Lakeland was seriously injured in the attack that happened about 5:30 p.m. at her home at 1210 Waterford Drive.

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TBO.com

Published: October 4, 2009

LAKELAND - A 74-year-old woman is recovering from injuries she received after being attacked by five raccoons at her front door Saturday evening, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said.

Gretchen Whitted of Lakeland was seriously injured in the attack that happened about 5:30 p.m. at her home at 1210 Waterford Drive, the sheriff's office said.

"She was gashed open around her legs," said Sheriff Grady Judd. "We're not talking about a lot of little bites here.

"She was filleted," he said.

Whitted heard a noise outside her house and saw five raccoons in her back yard. They then migrated to her front yard. She opened the front door of her home to wave the critters away, but when she did, they attacked her, biting and scratching her legs. Whitted fell and the animals continued to attack her.

Later, she told investigators, she wasn't sure whether she fell over her own feet or over the animals, Judd said. She also thought that perhaps the mother in the group was trying to protect her young.

Neighbor Christy Steinmetz said she was sitting on her couch with her family when she heard something that sounded at first like laughter. She was on her way to check it out when she heard Whitted cry, "Help."

She said she found Whitted on her hands and knees trying to get up and the raccoons coming from the front porch area. Steinmetz said she backed up into the street to get out of the way of the raccoons, which appeared to be on their way to a drain.

"She was in disbelief," Steinmetz said of Whitted's reaction to the incident. "She didn't believe the raccoons attacked her."

Whitted was transported to Lakeland Regional Medical Center where she is in stable condition in the trauma unit. She received dozens of staples and sutures, and will require additional treatment.

"The victim is being treated as though she has had a rabies exposure," Judd said. "While we don't know if there has been an actual exposure, we just can't take that chance."

Typically, raccoons only come out at night. Authorities are concerned as to why the critters took part in what Judd called a "gang attack" during daylight hours.

Deputies enlisted firefighters to flush the drain into which the raccoons disappeared, and traps were being set up throughout the neighborhood. Residents were also being alerted to the attack via automated telephone alerts.

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