Woman badly hurt by Highland stag

A woman has been seriously injured in a "one-in-a-million" attack by a stag.

Kate Stone, from Cambridge, was gored by the animal near Fort William in the Highlands and had to be airlifted to hospital in Glasgow.

She is understood to be in intensive care at Southern General Hospital, with injuries to her neck and spine caused by the stag's antlers.

The attack happened in the early hours of Monday December 30 when Ms Stone and a group of friends were standing outside a private residence in Lochailort.

The group were on a short break in the Highlands and had been at a ceilidh in Lochailort Inn. They were staying at the nearby Mo-Dhachaidh B&B owned by Gary Burton.

Mr Burton said he heard about the attack when one of Ms Stone's friends returned at around 2.30am.

"I think what happened was that the stag panicked. It was trapped in a fenced garden having got through a gate. I don't think there was anywhere else to go and it charged out of the gate," he said.

"It's very bizarre and very horrific."

The group were left shocked by the attack but managed to help Ms Stone and contact the emergency services, Mr Burton said.

"The last I heard was late last night that Kate is still in intensive care," he said.

The local community has never experienced attacks of this nature before, he said.

"This is a one-in-a-million event which has shocked the whole community.

"We are at one with nature in Lochailort, and we have deer all around us.

"We are all hoping and praying that Kate pulls through.

"I don't pry into our guests personal lives but I had a conversation with Kate and I know she is a very outdoors person, and loves camping and walking. It would be a tragedy if she couldn't do that any more."