16 September 2023 , 05:24
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A man said he had to “play dead” after being attacked and trampled on by a herd of cows in a terrifying ordeal which happened as he was walking along a well-used public footpath.
Glyn Austin, 71, was walking a stretch of the Wales Coast Path in Carmarthenshire on the morning of Friday, September 1. Mr Austin, a retired clergyman who lives in Capel Iwan near Newcastle Emlym, was visiting his father-in-law in Burry Port that morning and as the weather was fine he decided to walk a stretch of the journey, so his wife dropped him and their two dogs off to take the rest of the trip on foot, reports Wales Online.
As Mr Austin walked with his dogs, who were both on leads, he said he noticed a herd of cows blocking the path along a section known locally as Bank y Lord a short distance from the A484 between Kidwelly and Pembrey. Still being around 50 yards away from the cows Mr Austin said he stopped and decided to take a wide arc around the cattle so as not to go near them. What happened next left him convinced that he would die.
“I had two dogs with me so I didn’t want to go near the cattle so I went around the edge,” he said. “I thought I was far enough away, my dogs weren’t barking and were both on a lead, but they just came towards me and charged me – maybe 15 of them. Each time I tried to get up they knocked me over again and trampled me. I then just pretended I was dead.”
Mr Austin explained how he dared not open his eyes for fear of another attack and how he could still hear the cows as they walked around him. “It’s a bit of a blur," he added. "I thought they were going to stop as they got nearer but they just didn’t – it’s as if it happened in slow motion. I was lying there, pretending to be dead, and I could hear them standing there breathing. I thought my time was up.”
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By this point Mr Austin said his dogs had started barking and that alerted a man who was working nearby. He came over and was able to scare the cows away with Mr Austin still lying on the ground in agony. The man who came to his aid – Austin Bevan from Pembroke Dock – called the ambulance immediately and also managed to contact Mr Austin’s wife to tell her of the terrifying incident.
A Wales Air Ambulance helicopter from Dafen arrived at the scene a short time later and Mr Austin was airlifted to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff where he stayed for six nights. He sustained six broken ribs, including one which was broken in two places, and bruising to other parts of his body.
Mr Austin said he is now at home recovering from his injuries and feels fortunate to still be alive. His distress over what happened was heightened further when he heard of another incident, which happened on the same day, in Powys when a woman walking her dogs was attacked by cows. Tragically she did not survive.
Mr Austin says he was full of admiration for the man who rushed to his aid, the Wales Air Ambulance, and the medics who treated him at the hospital. He said staff there said it was not unusual for patients to be admitted to hospital with injuries following attacks by cattle.
“It’s very scary,” he added. “We have a right to walk on this path. We are not talking about somewhere in the middle of nowhere where nobody ever goes – it’s the Wales Coast Path and it’s sold as an attraction in Wales. We’ve just finished the school holidays and it could have been worse – it could have been children. It’s definitely changed my thoughts about walking near cows. My wife won’t go near cows but I always thought: ‘I’ll be okay – it’ll be fine’. I know better now.”
Mr Austin has reported the attack to the Health and Safety Executive. A spokesman for the government agency confirmed: “We are aware of an incident and are currently making inquiries."