According to local officials, two men were slain by a rogue camel that escaped from a Tennessee petting zoo.
Bobby Matheny, 42, and Tommy Gunn, 67, both from Tennessee, died after being surrounded and attacked by a ferocious camel in Obion, some 100 miles northeast of Memphis, on Thursday.
The humped beast was shot and killed by responding authorities.
At around 4:45 p.m., the Obion County Sheriff’s Office received a call about a loose camel threatening people near the Shirley Farms petting zoo, according to the agency.
When deputies arrived, they discovered the two unconscious victims as well as the loose beast. Several organisations were on the spot to help the victims and transport them to safety.
As deputies moved one of the victims into an ambulance, the camel reappeared and attacked a sheriff’s office vehicle. Officers were forced to “put the camel down for the safety of everyone on the scene,” the statement said.
Matheny and Gunn died at the scene after succumbing to their injuries.
The camel’s whereabouts are unknown.
According to a family relative of one of the victims, the two men were at the property to assist in the capture of the camel. According to the relative, the animal cornered them and attacked, crushing the males to death.
When fully matured, camels “have the strength to crush limbs and legs, as well as your neck, while kicking forward and backwards,” according to a camel specialist.
“The vast majority of creatures can only kick backwards. “While kneeling forward to crush you, camels will do a combination of all of those things,” the expert stated.
Shirley Farms told CBS News that she and her family are angry and sad over the attack, but she didn’t elaborate.
According to an online obituary, Matheny worked as a janitor at Lake County High School. On Sunday, at 3 p.m., a funeral ceremony will be held in the school’s gymnasium.
Autumn Staggs, who worked as a janitor with Matheny for five years, expressed her sorrow in a touching Facebook post that included a video of Matheny joking around while cleaning a school floor.
“Until I decided to go for another career, we had many laughs and many hard work days up there.” He was always my go-to guy for venting and vice versa. Bob was one of a kind, and I still can’t believe he died.