A woman suffered life-threatening injuries Tuesday morning after being attacked by a pit bull in San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood, according to police.
The attack was reported around 9:20 a.m. on the 500 block of Larkin Street, between Eddy and Turk streets. When San Francisco police officers arrived, they found the injured woman and the dog near her.
Officers separated the woman from the dog and provided assistance until medical crews arrived. The woman was taken to a hospital for treatment of serious, traumatic injuries.
The dog was described by authorities as a large pit bull-type dog. Video from the scene showed officers using a control pole, also known as a catch pole, to restrain the animal while emergency responders treated the woman.
The dog later became unresponsive. San Francisco Animal Care and Control personnel arrived to take custody of the animal but found it already deceased. The circumstances surrounding the dog’s death have not been publicly established.
Animal Care and Control said the dog’s remains were taken into its custody. The agency has not released additional details about the incident.
Witnesses told local media that the dog appeared to be attacking the woman for several minutes and that people nearby attempted to intervene before police arrived. One witness said the dog’s owner was initially present but later left the area. Police have not publicly identified the owner.
The victim has not been publicly identified, and authorities have not released further details about her medical condition beyond describing her injuries as life-threatening.
The incident has also renewed attention to concerns about off-leash dogs in the Tenderloin. San Francisco District 2 Supervisor Stephen Sherrill has previously raised concerns about dogs being allowed to roam without leashes in the neighborhood. The city’s court handling vicious-dog cases resumed hearings in June after a period of interruption.
San Francisco police are continuing to investigate the attack and are asking anyone with information to contact the department at 415-575-4444 or provide information through the department’s tip system.
The investigation remains ongoing.
