Horror as dog mauls 11 children in playground Terrier’s crazed rampage leaves park looking like a ‘warzone’
a CRAZED dog mauled 11 children and left a park playground looking like a ‘warzone’.
terrified youngsters as young as six had to be pulled up on to a climbing frame to escape the 45-minute attack.
the rampage only ended when parents fought the dog to the ground and wrapped a cardigan around its jaws.
Nine of the children were taken to hospital and one ten-year-old girl was left needing skin grafts to her leg.
the Staffordshire bull terrier, called marley, turned on children at the park in Blyth, Northumberland, when its muzzle was removed. its owner – named by locals as 37-year-old Claire Neal – was yesterday arrested on suspicion of having a dog that was dangerously out of control.
among the nine children treated in hospital for bites after the attack on Wednesday evening was Katelyn Wilshire, ten, who was yesterday awaiting reconstructive surgery on her leg.
Her stepfather Damien thompson, 33, said a ‘chunk’ had been taken out of the schoolgirl’s calf when the dog bit her 12 times. He added: ‘Katelyn was hysterical. She does not like dogs as it is.
‘What happened is totally unbelievable. So many children were attacked by this dog. So much physical and mental dam-
‘Grabbed a small boy by the arm’
age was done to Katelyn, i don’t know how she’s going to cope.’
the mother of another injured youngster claimed the same dog bit a child last year, but that police failed to have it destroyed.
michelle laws’s six-year-old son robbie suffered bite wounds to his back.
the 44-year-old said: ‘if it was put down when it was supposed to be then this would not have happened to all of the children – and it could have been a lot worse.’
another witness said of the scene: ‘there were injured kids lying all over the place, it was a warzone.’ Corrie Stapperd, eight, was bitten on both legs and given antibiotics in hospital. Keen dancers Stevie-Brooke maddison and Nicole Nesbitt, both 11, also suffered leg injuries.
Eventually two fathers – Brett richards and adam mulvey – began kicking the dog and managed to pin it to the ground.
mr richards’ wife Fiona told how their 11-year-old daughter izzy was bitten, but ran home to ask her parents to come and help.
‘She was terrified but more concerned for the other kids,’ her mother said. ‘Brett and i ran out of the house and to the park and saw total chaos. the dog was running around frantically biting any child that came close to it. Some of the small kids couldn’t get up, they were trying to climb over other children but were falling back down and into danger again.
‘the dog grabbed a smaller boy by his arm and took him to the ground, it was terrifying how aggressively it went for him. Brett ran up and kicked as hard as he could. that seemed to wind the dog and take away some of its aggression.
‘at the same time another dad, adam mulvey, jumped on top of the dog and pinned it to the floor.
‘He had its head held to the ground so i ran back and got our dog’s lead. the Staffie wasn’t wear- ing a collar so Brett formed the lead into a kind of noose and slipped it over the dog’s head.’
mr richards tied the dog to some railings and another adult wrapped a cardigan around its head.
locals said the dog was being walked by a teenage girl who lives with Neal. She was said to have been bitten herself after removing the dog’s lead and muzzle. a neighbour, who did not want to be named, said: ‘it doesn’t like people, it’s always been aggressive.
‘it’s absolutely terrible what has happened to those poor kids, they were just playing outside when this dog was let loose amongst them.’
Police were called to the park and took the dog to a secure kennel.