Reservation members thwart cougar attack

Some 30 members of an Indian reservation on Canada's Vancouver Island saved a neighbor being attacked by a cougar in a gravel pit, residents said. John Frank Jr., 38, had finished work for the day Tuesday afternoon and was walking to his truck when he realized he'd left his VHF radio on the side of an excavator, the Victoria Times-Colonist reported. Just as he picked up the radio, he said he heard a cougar make a whistling noise as it lunged at him, Frank said. He had locked the cab to the excavator, so he scrambled to the roof of the cab and used the radio to call for help. The cougar took several swipes at him, shredding his pants from the knee down and ripping off a shoe, Frank said. In response to his call for help, at least 30 people from the Ahousaht reservation north of Tofino rushed to the pit. As they began arriving, the cougar raced off, the report said. Conservation officers used dogs Wednesday to search for the 150-pound cat, but were unsuccessful. A nearby school was ordered closed Wednesday, but reopened Thursday, the report said.