Bison attack at Yellowstone park leaves tourist seriously injured

A tourist has been seriously injured after being flung into the air by a large bison in a dramatic attack at Yellowstone National Park.

Footage of the incident, which occurred near Yellowstone Lake on Friday, show the man being tossed about 2.5m in the air by the animal, local news outlet Cowboy State Daily reported.

The man, who has since been identified as 65-year-old Carl Isom-McDaniel, had been visiting the area with his grandson when the animal attacked, leaving him with several broken bones and serious injuries, the BBC reported.

The United States National Park Service says bison can weigh up to 900kg and run three times faster than humans, “making it very important to give them plenty of space”.

“Bison may appear tranquil, but these large animals have injured more people in Yellowstone than any other animal,” the organisation advises on its website.

Professional photographer Mike MacLeod was at the scene and captured the entire incident on camera. He told Cowboy State Daily the bison was “angry, agitated and charging anything and everything”.

“I was just trying to get some dramatic footage of that bison having a fit,” he told the outlet. “It’s changed my idea of what to expect from these guys at this time of year, because I would not have predicted that happening.

“He [the bison] started walking through the campground. He was coming up to this group of kids, who were taking pictures on their cellphones from a good distance away, and then the buffalo charged these kids,” MacLeod told Cowboy State Daily.

Footage shows McDaniel and his grandson attempting to get away from the bison – often called buffalo in North America – when it suddenly turned and charged.

McDaniel is seen running to avoid the animal, but the bison closed the distance and struck him with its head, launching him high into the air.

After the animal hit the man, MacLeod tried to scare it off.

“I had to get the bison’s attention. I was really afraid he was going to gore the guy on the ground, so I stopped videotaping and ran at the bison, yelled loud, and was trying to be as big and intimidating as possible,” MacLeod said.

Once the bison moved away, the photographer and several bystanders went to help.

“He was in a lot of pain with his leg,” MacLeod told Cowboy State Daily.

“Otherwise he was conscious the whole time, in good spirits, joking.”

On Sunday, McDaniel posted a brief note on Facebook.

“Thank you everyone I am OK,” he wrote.