A brave young woman and her mother were released from a hospital in India last week after sustaining injuries from a tiger attack.
The horrifying sound of a shrieking goat lured 23-year-old Rupali Meshram out of her home in western Maharashtra state in India. She witnessed a tiger attacking her defenseless goat, and her instinct was to find anything within reach to ward off the savage animal.
According to BBC News, Rupali picked up a stick and hit the tiger, causing the animal to change its prey to its assailant. The girl was attacked as well as her mother, Jijabhai, who dragged her valiant daughter back into their house.
Immediately after the incident, the fierce warrior who luckily miraculously survived the attack documented the aftermath with a selfie. Blood is running down Rupali's face in the photo with her mother, but any sense of fear is absent and her composure is impressively intact.
The consulting doctor praised the girl for her "exemplary courage" but was told the situation could've been fatal if she had been bitten by the tiger.
Rupali sustained injuries to her head, arms, and torso, according to BBC, but they were minor enough for a speedy recovery.
"I thought my daughter was going to die," Jijabhai told BBC Hindi's Sanjay Tiwari.
After the initial attack, the woman called for the forest guard, but by the time they arrived thirty minutes after being notified, the tiger had already wandered off.
Tiger attacks are common in Southeast Asia and are known to attack and kill human beings if startled, according to Wikipedia. Deaths are not always deliberate and some people are killed by accident.
The most comprehensive study of deaths due to tiger attacks estimates that at least 373,000 people died due to tiger attacks between 1800 and 2009, the majority of these attacks occurring in South and Southeast Asia.
Man-eaters have been a recurrent problem for India, especially in Kumaon, Garhwal and the Sundarbans mangrove swamps of Bengal. There, some healthy tigers have been known to hunt humans. Even though tigers usually avoid elephants, they have been known to jump on an elephant's back and severely injure the mahout riding on the elephant's back
BBC reported that Rupali's village is prone to wildlife visitations because of its proximity to a wildlife park.
"I am a bit worried about returning to my village so soon after an attack like this, but I am not scared," Rupali told BBC Hindi.
Unfortunately, the goat did not survive. But the rescue attempt was still recognized and appreciated on Twitter.
Even though Rupali was revered for her bravery, people still had concerns about her safety in the future.
Regardless of warnigs from the concerned, Rupali was acknowledged as someone not to be messed with.
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