14 DAY TRIAL // The popular beach from the Parana river in Rosario, Argentina was closed after more than 60 swimmers were injured in a mass piranha attack. The very aggressive fish were lured to shore by debris left behind by fishermen in the past days.
With temperatures of almost 38C (100F), locals decided to cool down on the beach, on Christmas day, without knowing what was lurking in the river's waters. After swimming for a few moments, people started running out of the water screaming and bleeding from wounds created by a shoal of meat-eating fish.
Almost 60 victims were reported, 20 of which were children, terrified by the horrible attack. A 7-year-old girl lost part of her finger after an aggressive fish bit part of it off, and others had deep cuts and wounds on their extremities after trying to fight off the hungry animals, notes Daily Mail.
When the panic started, people rushed to the water to drag the injured ones to safety and avoid any other casualties. Coastguards assisted the wounded and called paramedics to treat the victims of the attack, while police officers were closing the area and forcing people to stay away from the water.
One similar attack was reported back in 2008, with almost 40 victims, after the same species of piranha fish aggressively took over the shore. The species is called “palometas” and is believed to have been attracted to shore by debris gathered in the area.
“This sort of event in this area is absolutely sporadic. It was the conjunction of two factors, a shoal that passed very briefly through an area full of people,” Ricardo Biasatti, local government spokesman says, according to Daily Mail.
The swarm of fish took all of the locals bathing in the river on Christmas day by surprise and caused a temporary shutdown of the popular beach, until the infestation was cleared. With their large appetite for meat and really sharp teeth, piranha fish can be extremely dangerous. They usually attack in packs and can rip chunks of meat in just seconds.