'We cannot walk freely in our community': Mission, B.C. sees 9 coyote attacks in under a week

After seven coyote attacks were reported in just over 24 hours late last week, there have been two more attacks in the same area of Mission, B.C., bringing the total to nine.

One of the victims was an RCMP member.

“A policeman that was going to work was bitten in their (detachment) parking lot,” explained Todd Hunter, a conservation officer.

“(The police) tried to capture the coyote by firearm and put it down,” he said, adding they were not successful.

The attack happened Monday morning, shortly after a similar incident in the nearby parking lot of a Mission Walmart store.

In that instance, the victim was waiting in the parking lot for a ride to work. He had his car door open.

“It just came in and bit my leg,” he said in a video he took of the coyote right after the attack.

He described the coyote as “massive.”

Fortunately, injuries have not been severe, though both victims from Monday did go to hospital.

Hunter said victims have suffered “bite marks, puncture mark wounds, primarily to the legs.”

Earlier this month, Matt Dirksen was working in the area when something suddenly latched onto his leg.

“I looked behind me and there’s a coyote on my leg,” he explained.

“I was kind of shocked, I couldn’t believe what was going on. And then I ripped my leg out of its mouth and then it came back a couple more times,” he said.

Dirksen said the coyote seemed unafraid and it took some effort to scare it away.

He’s grateful to have been wearing cowboy boots at the time, which he think saved him from more serious injuries.

He also believes it was the same coyote that killed his mom’s cat in late August.

Dirksen’s mom, Kim, said people are worried and frustrated by the attacks and aren’t sure what to do.

“We cannot walk freely in our community because we don’t know who is going to be bit next,” she said.

“I understand they’re very wile, they’re very smart, they’re very hard to deal with but something needs to be done,” she said, explaining that she has been calling conservation officers but has not heard back.

Conservation officers say they have already stepped up targeted patrols in the area and are working with both police and Mission officials.

“We’re doing everything we can to try and determine the coyotes responsible and stop this sort of behavior before it leads to anyone getting injured further,” Hunter said.

“We highly suspect that the coyotes that are behaving in this manner have been fed or have access to human food,” he said, adding that officers have identified a number of coyotes exhibiting “unnatural” behavior, but they don’t yet know if it’s one coyote or several responsible for the attacks.

Kim Dirksen said feeding the coyotes is “disgraceful.”

“People need to be smarter than that because they’re putting lives at risk,” she said.

Hunter said anyone feeding coyotes could be fined or face charges through the courts.

Matt Dirksen worries if a toddler was grabbed by one of the aggressive coyotes, the injuries would be much more serious.

“I’ve got nieces and nephews. If (a coyote) grabbed one of them, it would have taken them right into the bushes,” he said.

Conservation officers are asking people to be vigilant, saying children should stay nearby and pets should be on leashes.

“We want people to be vigilant and understand this is unusual behavior. It happens infrequently and is rare,” Hunter said.