Woman, 70, is hospitalised after seagull attacks her as she walks down the street
Lesley Wright was heading to a neighbour's house in Moray, in the north-east of Scotland, when the bird swooped down from behind and hit the back of her head, sending her crashing to the ground in a daze.
Ms Wright, who has now been left with a scar and a bald patch as a result of the gull's impact, told how she 'felt an almighty whack' as the nose-diving bird left her dripping in blood.
She said: 'I didn't know it was a seagull at the time, not until I heard it squawking after it had done it.
'Next thing I knew my head was bleeding. It wasn't a big cut, but it was bleeding a lot with it being a head wound.'
Thankfully, a concerned bystander brought the incident to the attention of Selina Ho, a nearby lash technician who Ms Wright had been on her way to visit.
Ms Wright said she had not wanted to bother Selina by bringing blood into her home, but the bystander insisted and brought the knocked on her neighbour's door.
Selina brought Ms Wright a bottle of water and some towels in an attempt to clean up the bloody wound before rushing her to hospital to be taken care of by medics.
The wound did not require stitched and was instead glued, but the ordeal has left Ms Wright with a permanent scar and temporary bald patch.
But more than that, the incident has left Ms Wright in fear of the 'flying rats' pouncing on her again - and she has questioned why they are a protected species.
She said: 'If I'm out, and I see seagulls or a chick around, I tend to start looking up in the air to make sure none are coming near me. I'm very wary now.
'I've seen quite a few incidents where they've been eating sandwiches out of people's hands on the high street, and my husband says they always go for the dog at the top of the street.
'I do wonder why they're a protected species - they're not nice to look at, and all you can hear at three or four o'clock in the morning is them squawking.
'People call them flying rats - so why are they protected?'
The painful ordeal has left Ms Wright in fear of the 'flying rats' pouncing on her again when she walks down the street
The incident comes less than two weeks after a seagull was brutally kicked to death after stealing a man's fish and chips.
The herring gull nosedived to steal the man's supper from a takeaway near the Marine Parade in Barmouth, Wales at around 1pm on August 4.
It was then attacked and kicked by the angry customer before later dying from its injuries, according to the RSPCA.
The charity has since asked for help to identify the man, who is said to have curly hair and stands at around 5ft 10in.
He was also said to be wearing a black jacket, with rescue officers asking for any witnesses to come forward.
Julia Dalgleish of the RSPCA, said: 'Gulls and their nests are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is illegal to do anything that causes suffering to gulls.
'Sadly, many people have an unfavourable opinion of gulls – but these are intelligent animals who form strong social bonds with.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
15 minutes ago
- The Independent
Norwich City steward who accidentally sent memes to colleague wins £8,000 payout
A steward at a Championship football club has won an £8,000 payout after he was wrongly sacked under his club's ' Orwellian ' disciplinary policy for sending memes about politicians. Gennaro Romano, 49, was sacked by Norwich City Football Club in October 2023 after sending mocked-up images of Diane Abbott and Nicola Sturgeon alongside comments about Russell Brand to the head of the academy. The steward, who had a 12-year unblemished record, apologised and said he forwarded the WhatsApp messages by accident, an employment tribunal was told. The championship club sacked him for breaching its disciplinary policies, a decision described as 'riddled with unfairness'. A Norwich employment tribunal heard Mr Romano had been working as a steward on matchdays since 2011 alongside his main job with Royal Mail. In September 2023, he was accused of sending 'messages of an inappropriate nature' to Neil Hunter, head of The Canaries' academy operations. The photos were of former Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon and MP Diane Abbott with captions about actor Russell Brand. 'This was at the time when the media was reporting that allegations of sexual assault were being made against Russell Brand,' the tribunal said. At a meeting with the club, he was shown a screen shot of two images received by Mr Hunter. Mr Romano claimed he had meant to send the photos to a friend who is also called Neil, but had forwarded them to his colleague by accident, the tribunal heard. The Carrow Road steward admitted the pictures were 'not nice', and apologised a number of times throughout the process, the tribunal was told. But club managers decided that he had not shown 'sufficient understanding or remorse', and sacked him. Upholding Mr Romano's claim, the tribunal said the club's decision-making process had been 'riddled with unfairness'. 'It was not one which any reasonable employer would have taken,' it added. Describing the club's actions, the tribunal said: 'If the club intends its disciplinary policy to have such an extensive, some might say Orwellian, reach, then it is incumbent on it to make that position clear.' The tribunal awarded Mr Romano £8,300. His claim of race discrimination was dismissed.
The Independent
15 minutes ago
- The Independent
Men in court charged with violent disorder after protests outside migrant hotel
A man who took part in a demonstration outside a hotel housing asylum seekers has been warned he is likely to be jailed. Waitrose worker Dean Smith was one of several men to have appeared in court charged with violent disorder following protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex. Protests began after a migrant who was housed there was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. A series of separate hearings took place at Chelmsford Crown Court on Monday involving people alleged to have gone to the area during protests last month. Smith, 51, of Epping, pleaded guilty to a charge of violent disorder said to have happened on July 17. Judge Jamie Sawyer remanded Smith in custody until October 6 when he will be sentenced at the same court, and he warned the sentence would 'likely' be one of immediate custody. Barrister Christopher Martin, for Smith, told the court Smith 'lives with his mother and is her carer' and 'still works full-time for Waitrose where he's worked full-time for the last seven years'. Stuart Williams, 36, of Thornwood, Epping, pleaded guilty to violent disorder on July 17 and was remanded in custody until October 6 when he will be sentenced. The judge ordered a pre-sentence report about Williams and said: 'The strong likelihood is it will be an immediate prison sentence.' Lee Gower, 43, of Epping, pleaded not guilty to violent disorder and he also denied assaulting a police officer on July 17. Gower was remanded in custody until a further case management hearing on September 22. Shaun Thompson, 37, of Epping, who is alleged to have punched a police car, pleaded not guilty to violent disorder on July 17 and was bailed until a further case management hearing on September 22. Jonathan Glover, 47, of Waltham Abbey, was not asked to enter a plea to a charge of violent disorder said to have happened on July 17. Glover was bailed until September 22, when an application to dismiss his case is due to be heard. Keith Silk, 33, of Loughton, pleaded not guilty to violent disorder on July 17. Silk also denied criminal damage, having been accused of damaging a sign belonging to the Bell Hotel, and was bailed until a further case management hearing on September 22. Barrister Richard Reynolds, for defendant Aaron Elles, 28, of Harlow, said Elles wanted to make an application to vacate his guilty plea to a charge of violent disorder, entered at an earlier magistrates' court hearing. Elles was remanded in custody until a further case management hearing on September 22.
The Guardian
16 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Man found guilty for role in east-London shooting of nine-year-old girl
A man has been found guilty for his role in the shooting of a nine-year-old girl outside an east-London restaurant in a long-running gang feud. The girl was hit in the head by one of six bullets fired by a man on a passing motorbike as she sat with her family in the Evin restaurant in Kingsland High Street, Hackney, on 29 May last year. The gunman has not been caught, but jurors were told Javon Riley played a 'key role' before, during and after the shooting. He carried out reconnaissance of the restaurant before the attack, scouted for potential targets and drove the gunman away in a stolen car, which was later found burnt out. On Monday, Riley, 33, from Tottenham, north London, was found guilty of causing grievous harm with intent to the nine-year-old girl, who cannot be identified for legal reasons. The child was a victim of a bloody rivalry between Turkish gangs of north London, while three men who were sitting at a nearby table were also struck and injured, the Old Bailey was told. Riley was also found guilty of attempting to murder Mustafa Kiziltan, 35, Kenan Aydogdu, 45 and Nasser Ali, 44. The three men were said to be affiliated with the Hackney Turks organised crime gang, who had a rivalry with the Tottenham Turks, with whom Riley had links, the court heard. The court was told that Aydogdu had been injured in a previous shooting. The Old Bailey jury deliberated for six hours and three minutes to convict Riley by a majority of 10 to two. Judge Mark Lucraft KC remanded Riley into custody to be sentenced on 12 September. He told Riley to expect a lengthy prison sentence, saying: 'You have clearly taken part in a shooting which has led to four people being injured, one of them particularly seriously.' The nine-year-old girl spent three months in hospital and will have lifelong physical and cognitive problems as the bullet remains lodged in her brain. The three male victims received gunshot wounds to the arm, leg and thigh. In a statement, the girl's mother said: 'In a single moment, the future we had imagined for our daughter was torn away. 'She was once an energetic, adventurous child – everything that celebrated movement, energy and life. 'Now, weakness on her left side means she can only watch from the sidelines, living with a titanium plate in her skull and a bullet still in her brain. 'As parents, we are shattered: emotionally, physically, mentally and financially. 'Each day brings new challenges, from her slower growth on one side to the emotional and mental scars that cannot be seen.' During the three-week trial, Riley was repeatedly asked to identify the 'third party' who had recruited him for about £40,000. He refused to name them or help to identify the gunman, claiming he feared for his life and those of his family. Scotland Yard has offered a reward of up to £15,000 for information that leads to the identification, arrest of and prosecution the man who fired the weapon. The court heard that Jamaica-born Riley had a string of convictions dating back to 2008 including for possession of cannabis and cocaine, driving offences and having an offensive weapon and a blade in his car.
