Myra Baloun rescued Tayla E. Westgard from an attacking cougar, Hope, British Columbia, April 17, 1999. Tayla, 7, was with two other girls at a camp in a wooded area when a 30-pound cougar attacked her. The other girls fled, screaming. Also attending the camp, Ms. Baloun, 43, homemaker, was nearby and heard the screams. She ran toward Tayla, en route seeing the attack. Ms. Baloun shouted at the cougar, then picked up a branch and approached it. She struck the cougar several times with the branch, until it released Tayla. Ms. Baloun grasped Tayla and pulled her to her feet, then fled the scene with her. Tracked down, the cougar was found in a tree about 200 feet away, then was destroyed. Tayla was hospitalized for treatment of a severe eye injury and numerous lacerations that required extensive suturing.
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