VALHALLA, N.Y. Two days after a woman was attacked by a raccoon while trying to get in her car near the Valhalla train station, residents are taking precautionary measures in the same area.
Louise Chelluck, owner of the Valhalla Crossing restaurant near the train station and commuter lot, warned her customers and workers.
Ive never heard of anything like this happening before, Chelluck said. I told my workers and stuff that when theyre going out to their cars, especially at night, to stomp their feet and try to make some noise to scare any animals away.
The attack occurred on Tuesday at around 7 p.m. in the commuter parking lot, according to Police Chief Louis Alagno. The raccoon bit the woman, 33, of White Plains, on the ankle and broke skin. After calling 911, the woman was taken to the White Plains Hospital where she was treated for rabies, police said. Mount Pleasant Police were unable to capture the raccoon. Flyers were placed on cars in the parking lot and posted around the area of the train station by police, warning residents to stay away from any wild animals.
Mount Pleasant resident Kathleen Curry Mangels said she saw a raccoon during the day last Saturday near Stevens Avenue in Valhalla. Mangels said she reported it to Mount Pleasant Police but that nothing was done.
Needless to say if someone came out to take care of this when it was reported, this poor lady may have not been injured, Mangels said.
Valhalla resident Vincent Marziel said that its not raccoons that he is worried about, but a different wild animal.
Im worried about coyotes, Marziel said. I see them all the time around my house and theres nothing really the police or animal control can do because they come and go.
The Mount Pleasant Police continue to issue a warning to stay away from any wild animals and to immediately report any suspicious animals to police.
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