Hiker gored by bison is recovering

A backpacker who was gored this week by an American bison on Santa Catalina Island continued to recover Friday.

Jardrec Anangos, 24, of Cerritos was recovering from a fractured pelvic bone after he was attacked Wednesday by one of the descendants of a herd brought over to film a silent movie in the 1920s.

“All I can say is I’m happy to be alive,” Anangos said.

Anangos said he and two friends had back-packed into Little Harbor to go snorkeling but saw a herd of about 15 bison blocking the path to the beach.

Anangos said he was about 20 feet away when he caught the eye of one animal. The bison “didn’t like me standing that close and charged me,” he said.

Anangos ran, but “there was no real chance of me escaping,” he said. “They’re way faster than humans.”

He was gored from behind in the upper thigh and lifted up.

“I was pretty much on top of his head,” he said.

The herd then moved away. Nearby campers administered first aid until paramedics airlifted Anangos to the hospital.

Bob Rhein, a spokesman for the Catalina Island Conservancy, said he had not heard of a bison attacking a human in the three years he had worked for the agency.