Woman feared for her life during bull attack on beach

A WOMAN attacked by a bull on Sligo’s Mullaghmore beach thought she was going to be killed by the animal.

Sonya Byrne, from Enniskillen, was out walking with her 11-year-old son Patrick and their dog when she was attacked by a Charolais bull who charged her from a herd of cattle on Sunday night. “It was the dog he was after I think. He gored me in the back and then just walked over me. I really thought I was going to be killed.”

She said she was grateful the animal had not attacked her young son Patrick.

“He would have been killed instantly and he and my daughter often walk that beach. It is about time Sligo County Council did something to ensure that people can walk the beach in peace,” she said.

Ms Byrne was taken to Sligo General Hospital where she was treated for severe injuries to her back and legs. She was released on Monday.

Sligo County Council have now warned people to stay off the unfenced beach because of the presence of the dangerous bull and cattle who are roaming the beach freely.

Yesterday, the bull was grazing within 100 metres of the beach as children strolled past in the morning sunshine.

Ms Byrne’s husband Niall has vowed to take legal action to ensure that nobody else has to endure the horror inflicted on his wife.

“The council say they can’t do anything and can’t fence it off because of common grazing. Are they waiting for somebody to be killed or seriously injured?”