Woman critically injured in stag attack in Scotland

LOCHAILORT, Scotland, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A woman was severely injured when a male deer charged at her and gored her in the throat with his antlers in Scotland's Highlands, authorities said.

Kate Stone, 30, was returning to her guest house in the Scottish town of Lochailort with friends Monday night when a rogue stag appeared in the dark, butted her violently and disappeared, the British newspaper The Mirror reported Tuesday.

She was taken to a Fort William hospital 15 miles away, then airlifted to a Glasgow hospital with a puncture to her neck and spinal column and severe blood loss, the newspaper said, adding she remains in critical condition.

A colleague who was present at the incident, Gary Burton, said, "There are plenty of deer around here but you never hear of a stag attacking anyone. The force of the attack must have been ferocious. I went to the scene [later] and found Kate's mobile phone smashed into tiny bits."

A local gamekeeper, Peter Fraser, said the attack was unusual.

"For a stag to come out of the darkness like this and go for someone is highly unusual, a chance in a million. It is very, very strange behavior for a stag in the wild," he said.