Yesterday evening, on Sunday February 5, there was a mountain lion attack in the Chisos Basin area of Big Bend National Park. A six-year-old boy, a visitor to the park, received injuries during the melee that were not life-threatening.
Park rangers closed several high Chisos Mountain trails today, at 8 AM Monday morning. Patrols began hunting for the lion.
At Noon, KRTS Radio reported on the situation. Additional national park personnel began patrols to notify trail users of the closure and to evacuate the area. As of this posting, Monday at 4 PM, the lion has not been located. A trained, professional dog team has been summoned to the park to help track it.
KRTS is speaking spoke with Public Information Officer David Elkowitz on-the-air at 4 PM. Click the podcast link above to hear this report.
Trail and campsite closures include the Window Trail, which is closed until further notice; the Pinnacles, Boulder Meadow, and Juniper Flat campsites of the Chisos Mountains are closed until further notice. Children are not advised to hike in the Chisos Mountains at this time and visitors should check on trail closures, which may change.
Tuesday, February 7: According to Big Bend National Park officials today, there are no new updates. But this KOSA Odessa CBS 7 news report includes an update on the boy's condition and mention of additional encounters with the mountain lion.