ARLINGTON — A pit bull attacked a group of missionaries Tuesday afternoon in Arlington, sending four people to hospitals and leaving one of them, a woman in her 70s, with severe dog bites.
Four Jehovah’s Witnesses rolled up to the home in a pickup around 12:25 p.m. in the 6500 block of 204th Street NE, across the street from the Arlington cemetery, city spokeswoman Kristin Banfield said.
A woman, 76, opened the door of the truck. A male pit bull escaped a backyard fence, lunged at the missionary and mauled her. The other three missionaries tried to pry the dog off of her, Banfield said.
Two relatives of the dog’s owner rushed from the home to help. The group used a 3- to 4-inch diameter tree branch to strike the pit bull, to try to make him stop biting. The dog was beaten back, but kept fighting in at least three separate attacks, Banfield said. The severely injured woman broke free and retreated to the truck. She lost a large amount of blood, Banfield said.
Aid crews called for a medical helicopter. It was canceled because it would have taken too long to fly from Bellingham, Banfield said. The woman was transported to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett by ambulance.
A second missionary, a 40-year-old woman, was bitten. A man, 31, and a woman, 63, from the home were attacked, too. Ambulances took those three to Cascade Valley Hospital in Arlington. The extent of their injuries wasn’t clear. The other two missionaries weren’t hurt.
Police and animal control officers responded to the home. A tow truck hauled away the missionaries’ truck to be impounded as evidence. Detectives were investigating the attack into the evening.
The dog’s owner returned to the home. He gave up the dog to Arlington police and, without prompting, asked officers to euthanize the animal.
Caleb Hutton: 425-339-3454; chutton@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @snocaleb.
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