A coyote chased down a jogger, and now a popular Broward park is closed
Coral Springs leaders have closed a popular nature area that attracts joggers and walkers to its trails and families to its playground facility in the wake of coyote sightings, the Broward city announced Wednesday night.
The move to temporarily close Three Mountains Natural Area at 9200 NW First St. comes after reports that a man jogging with his friend early Tuesday evening was chased down by a coyote.
Coyote chases park jogger
Isiah Presendieu said in an interview with WSVN that a coyote chased him during his workout on a hilltop at the park around 7 p.m.. As he ran from the animal he fell and tore ligaments in his leg.
“I thought it was going to be over with,” the 20-year-old Broward College student and J.P. Taravella High School grad told the station.
The coyote only took off when another parkgoer saw what was happening and fired a gun toward the animal, the Tap Into Parkland news site reported.
How to ‘haze’ a coyote
Last year, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission produced a video to teach people how to “haze” or deter coyotes.
“Some coyotes in urban areas may learn to tolerate human presence, instead of fleeing. Hazing is a technique used to remind coyotes that they need to yield to human presence, and remain wary of humans,” the commission said on its YouTube video.
A GoFundMe page
Presendieu set up a GoFundMe page to help cover his medical expenses. He said he goes to school full time and had hoped to play football in college and that he helps out at home.
“I am the only male figure in my mom’s household. I can no longer work and I’m sure it’s possible this may end my career but I am blessed to be here and would appreciate any blessings right now,” he wrote on GoFundMe from his hospital bed at Broward Health Coral Springs.
By Thursday morning, he raised $20 from three donors on a $30,000 goal.
Closing Three Mountains Natural Area
Coyotes have been spotted at the park in recent weeks, prompting the shutdown Wednesday night.
“Three Mountains Park will be closed until further notice. Please be cautious when walking your dog in the area,” Coral Springs officials posted on Twitter, adding a non-emergency number — 954-344-1800 — residents can call if they spot coyotes.
Euthanization outrage in Miami
Earlier February, a coyote was rescued from the water near PortMiami by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue. But the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission — which notes that coyotes are in all of Florida’s 67 counties and that encounters between humans and these canines are happening more often — euthanized the coyote before it could be transferred to Wildlife Rescue of Dade County in Homestead.
The euthanization decision outraged some animal activists.
This story was originally published February 27, 2020 at 10:02 AM.
