Yellowstone National Park.Photo:Getty Images
Getty Images
Amber Harris, from Phoenix, Arizona, shared the news on herFacebook pageTuesday alongside a photo of her showing off her engagement ring from her hospital bed.
Revealing her fiancé Chris Whitehill had planned to propose during the trip, Harris wrote, “Chris had planned a beautiful marriage proposal this week on a natural bridge but all three [including her daughter Rylee Eckblad] of us have been in the hospital since yesterday morning and I won’t be able to leave any time soon.”
“So my love got down on one knee beside my hospital bed last night and formally asked me to be his wife. Without any hesitation I said yes!”
Harris’s accident happened on the north shore of Lake Yellowstone on the morning of July 17, the National Park Service said in apress release.
“The female was walking with another individual in a field in front of the Lake Lodge when they saw two bison,” the NPS added. “Upon seeing them, the visitors turned to walk away from the bison. One of the bison charged and gored the woman.”
Detailing her injuries in her Facebook post, Harris said she suffered “7 spine fractures, bilateral collapsed lungs and bruising all over.”“Glory to God all my vital organs look good,” she added while also revealing she underwent both CT and MRI scans and is receiving pain medication.
Danger sign at Yellowstone National Park.Getty Images
Harris also recalled what she remembered of the incident with “the massive beast” and said she watched the bison “drop and roll in the dirt, like a dog” before it began “walking then running towards us.”
She concluded the post, “Please pray for my healing. God is faithful and merciful and I know He protected me in the attack. He will heal me.”
“It was such a freak accident,” he said, getting emotional. “And you think, ‘OK well we’re taking precautionary measures, we’re doing what we had been told to do to stay safe’ and it’s still not enough.”
A bison at Yellowstone National Park.Getty Images
“He had struck her head on and she was airborne,” he continued to the news outlet, recalling the encounter. “I think she did one or two backflips in the air and I was screaming and yelling to try and distract him.”
According to 12 News, the incident is still under investigation.
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In its release, the National Park Service cautioned that approaching wildlife in Yellowstone National Park may always pose a risk.
“When an animal is near a campsite, trail, boardwalk, parking lot, or in a developed area, give it space,” the NPS stated. “Stay more than 25 yards (23 m) away from all large animals - bison, elk, bighorn sheep, deer, moose, and coyotes - and at least 100 yards (91 m) away from bears and wolves. If need be, turn around and go the other way to avoid interacting with a wild animal in proximity.”
Bison may get more easily irritated in the mating season — which lasts from mid-July to mid-August — the NPS said, adding that visitors should “Use extra caution and give them additional space during this time."
“Bison are unpredictable and can run three times faster than humans," the NPS continued.
source: people.com
