RSS 2.0 FeedSeptember 29, 2011, Merrick Life
New update: Dog chased, woman still critical
Police believe dog may be injured from gunshots.
Reporter Laura Schofer talks with Detective Lt. Kevin Smith of the Nassau Conty Police Department.
Sixty-two year-old Shashi Bala Sharma of North Merrick remained in critical but stable condition in the intensive care unit at Nassau University Medical Center after being mauled by two pit bulls last week while running on the track at Brookside School in North Merrick, according to Shelley Lotenburg, a hospital spokeswoman.
Police found and shot at the dog on Tuesday, in the Ott Lane area of North Merrick, after receiving reports the dog had been seen on both South Drive and North Drive on Monday and Tuesday. Nassau County Detective Lieutenant Kevin Smith told this newspaper the dog may have gone back into the wooded area and may be injured.
Schools on Tuesday were locked down, including Brookside, Old Saw Mill and Fayette elementary schools.
Nassau County Detective Lieutenant Kevin Smith told this newspaper that the woman was first approached and harassed last Thursday by the dogs as she made her way off the track, where she exercises regularly.
They followed her into the parking lot where they attacked her, ripping at her clothes and biting her. “She managed to use her cell phone and call 911 while the animals continued attacking her,” said Detective Smith.
“She was able to say that she was by the senior center on Brookside and our local officers knew exactly where that is, and responded immediately.”
The call came in at 11 a.m., according to a police report. The police officers found the woman on the southeast corner of the parking lot still being attacked by the two pit bulls.
“As the officers approached, the pit bulls turned their attention onto the officers. The officers fired at the dogs, who then fled toward the west into the field behind the school. One succumbed to gunshots in the school yard. He was about 80 or 90 pounds,” said Detective Smith. The dog was gray colored.
The second dog made its way into the woods and is still loose. It is described as tan with white on the stomach area.
Detective Smith said it was uncertain whether the second dog was hurt. “We are asking people to be on the lookout for this dog and call 911. Do not approach this dog. We don’t know if the pit bull is hurt and wandering around or has returned home.”
A North Merrick resident told this newspaper that homes on Meadowbrook Road north of Southern State Parkway were alerted by police after the attack that a dangerous dog was loose in the vicinity, and that all persons and animals should go inside their homes for safety reasons.
The injured woman received lacerations to her arms, legs and head. “Her left arm was mangled,” said Detective Smith. “She was transferred to Nassau University Medical Center for her injuries” by Nassau County police ambulance.
North Merrick’s First Assistant Fire Chief Sean Kelleher was also on the scene. The North Merrick Fire Department is always called to the scene to provide medical assistance.
“We were called to the scene at 11:14 a.m. The county was here as well and they took the injured woman to the hospital,” he said.
He explained that the fire department’s emergency medical technicians (EMTs) “make sure there are no life-threatening issues; we then perform triage at the scene and get [the victim] to the hospital.”
An earlier pit bull attack
According to the detective, there was another pit bull attack on Richard Street on Wednesday, September 28, at around 11 p.m. “That individual was able to keep the dog away with his bicycle,” he said. It is unknown whether the two attacks are related.
Detective Smith said they were aware of several pit bulls that live in the area. “There was someone on Bridge Street that had five dogs, but two were put to sleep and the other three were returned to the owner. But those dogs are very young,” he said.
The dog that was killed did not have a collar or a computer chip imbedded for identification.
