Coonoor: A leopard that strayed into a house here, chasing a dog, and stayed there for over 12-hours as rescue personnel and frenzied people tried to drive it away, left quietly in the night, authorities said here on Monday.
The leopard attacked six persons, including the woman who lives in the house, causing them injuries, when they attempted to get the animal out of the house.
Among the six injured were four Fire and Rescue Services personnel, Forest Department officials had said on Sunday. One of the injured firemen was shifted to Coimbatore for treatment.
Another man, also part of the rescue attempt, fell down and sustained injuries. The pet dog too was injured after being attacked by the wild cat, they said.
The woman was also attacked by the leopard and all the injured, including the pet dog, are being treated at a local hospital.
The leopard, which entered the house near a reserve forest area, eventually moved out of the house quietly, scenes of which were captured on CCTV cameras.
The Forest department personnel had places two cages outside the house on Sunday hoping to catch the big cat.
Chasing the pet dog, the leopard entered the house near a forest area early on Sunday and disappeared into the woods on the night of the same day.
Attempts aimed at both finding and driving the animal out of the spacious house proved to be tricky for Forest and Fire and Rescue Department personnel.
As some people hurled firecrackers inside the house to locate the animal, it became seemingly scared.
All exit and entry doors were kept open, officials said, adding they directed the inmates of the house and the people who had gathered to move away from the premises to ensure silence so that the animal could go away.
The bursting of firecrackers on Deepavali morning in the neighbourhood on Sunday could also be one of the reasons why the animal chose to stay put indoors, officials said.
Coonoor is located near Ooty in the Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu, which is known for its beautiful mountain ranges.
(Published 13 November 2023, 17:07 IST)