Buffalo Kills Man, Injures Deputy in Ellsworth County

On August 7 at approximately 6:38 PM, Ellsworth County 911 received a call about a buffalo on Kansas Highway 4 at 5th Road in Ellsworth County.

According to a press release from Ellsworth County Sheriff Murray Marston, Rice County Dispatch was also contacted about the report as the south side of K-4 highway is in Rice County. An Ellsworth County Deputy was dispatched to the area where he found the animal and attempted to get it to return to a pasture when the buffalo suddenly charged him, seriously injuring the deputy. The deputy was transported by Claflin EMS to Ellsworth County Medical Center and later to Salina Regional Health Center.

On August 8 at approximately 9:03 AM, Ellsworth County 911 received a call from a lady that said that she needed an ambulance because she found her nephew dead in a pen and she thought a buffalo had killed him. Ellsworth County Deputies and Claflin EMS were dispatched to the scene. The location of the body was in a row of trees north of K-4 highway at 5th Road in Ellsworth County. The location of the deputy that was injured was approximately a quarter of a mile south of where the deceased body was found.

The coroner's preliminary cause of death, pending an autopsy, is that the male subject had been gored by an animal. The deceased has been identified as 56-year-old Scott Schroeder of rural Bushton who was also the owner of the 20-plus buffalo being kept at that location.

The injured deputy underwent surgery at Salina Regional Health Center and is in stable condition. A Rice County Deputy arrived at the scene of the attack Sunday night just as it occurred and the buffalo was put down when it appeared that it was preparing to charge at the down deputy. Both incidents are still under investigation.

(Information courtesy Ellsworth County Sheriff's Office.)