This happened Sunday, but I just saw it on Outside Magazine’s Facebook page. Two girls were attacked by a rabid beaver in the water at Lake Anna. According to Fredericksburg.com:

It’s just the fourth time in the past decade that a beaver in Virginia has been confirmed to have rabies, said Stuart Hutter, an epidemiologist with the Virginia Department of Health. Foxes, raccoons and skunks are the most common carriers, he said.

The girls, sisters Annabella and Alyssa Radnovich were bitten while swimming in Lake Anna around 11 a.m. Sunday. They were taken to Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center where Allysa, 11, received 15 stitches on her upper thigh. Annabella, 8, had wounds deeper than her sister’s just above her knee.

As of June 30, there had been 286 confirmed cases of animal rabies statewide this year, according to the Virginia Department of Health. This is the first confirmed case of a beaver with rabies in 2012.

Pretty amazing stuff. I’m not really sure what a parent is supposed to do in this situation. Beavers are rarely rabid, and I’m sure no one saw it before it attacked. Just a crazy, freak accident. And according to the story, the beaver was found and killed. It is (probably) safe to go back in the water.