Two people were injured when a male elk attacked a woman in Estes Park, Colorado, a state parks official said.
Video showed a woman thrown to the ground and poked with the bull elk’s antlers, said Jason Clay, a spokesman for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The Thursday morning attack took place near the town’s visitors center.
“She miraculously came out unharmed,” Clay said. “She had some scrapes. She was not transported and did not require medical attention.”
A man who is seen on video jumping out of the way slipped and hit his head on a rock but did not make contact with the wild animal, Clay said. The unidentified man was hospitalized in unknown condition.
The confrontation happened two days before the town’s annual Elk Fest, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
Clay said observers captured on video were too close to the animals, particularly during mating season when bulls can confront each other as they get territorial about females, known as cows.
He said there might have been another bull approaching at the time, provoking the attack.
Estes Park, adjacent to Rocky Mountain National Park, is about 70 miles north-northwest of Denver.
Liza Torres and Ali Gostanian contributed.