A woman was found mauled to death in a remote mountain region of Colorado in a suspected mountain lion attack.
Two hikers found the carnivorous creature standing over the woman’s body on New Year’s Day around noon, according to the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Department.
The hikers threw rocks at the mountain lion to scare it away and then made the grim discovery.
One of the hikers was a physician and didn’t find a pulse. Officials didn’t immediately release the woman’s identity.
The woman’s body was found on the Crosier Mountain trail near the small community of Glen Haven.
‘Trails in this area are in pretty remote land, so it’s wooded, it’s rocky, there’s elevation gains and dips,’ Kara Van Hoose, a spokesperson with CPW, said in a press conference.
Multiple agencies are assisting in an investigation into the woman’s gruesome death. One mountain lion was shot at the scene but fled. It was later euthanized.
CPW officials said it’s possible that multiple mountain lions were involved in the attack.
A second mountain lion was found nearby and fatally shot. CPW requires that wild animals that attack and kill humans must be euthanized.
Pathologists will perform a necropsy on the animal carcasses to check for abnormalities and neurological diseases.
All three Crosier trails were closed on New Year’s Day as emergency responders cleared the scene.
The tragedy marks the first fatal attack by a mountain lion in Colorado since 1999, according to CPW.
There have been 28 reported attacks in the state in the last 36 years.
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