A mother-of-three has died after being attacked by two dogs at her house in Cheshire.
Police and an air ambulance were called to the residential street in Widnes shortly after 5pm yesterday afternoon after the womanâs daughter raised the alarm.
The victim, named locally as 44-year-old Elayne Stanley, was found with serious injuries and died at the scene, according to DailyMail report.
Neighbours say it was Ms Stanleyâs own dogs, which they say were Mastiff-types called Billy and DJ, which launched the attack.
Bev Hall, 39, who lives opposite and has been friends with Elayne for 22 years, saw the aftermath of the incident.
She said: âElayne was at home with her daughters and she was arguing with her daughter.
âWe were here putting the tea on and the next thing her daughter runs in screaming for help saying âthe dogs are attacking mumâ.
âWe both dropped everything and ran over bare footed. The living room door was closed and Elayne was behind it so we couldnât get in.
âI could hear a dog growling and scratching, we threw all sorts to and banged on the windows to try and distract the dogs.
âThen the police were called, my partner and a couple of the neighbours started throwing bricks at the dogs from the side door.
âOnce the dogs were in the back garden my partner locked them out⊠By the time the paramedics came there was nothing they could do.â
Ms Hall added: âShe had the dogs for two or three years, they were actually her fella, Paulâs, dogs.
âShe had the girl dog Billy for a while before she got the second dog DJ which sheâs had about a year now.
âI have never known those dogs to be violent. My kids have slept on those dogs and used them as pillows, I canât believe it.
âThey used to bark when you went in and Elayne had started shutting her curtains because they would bark when people went past but I have never known the dogs to act that way.
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âThe police tried to tranquillise DJ three or four times but he wouldnât calm down, he had the taste of blood so he went for the police officers and they had to put him down.
âHe was shot twice but Billy the girl dog was tranquillised and taken away.â
Another neighbour, who asked not to be named, said Ms Stanley was a ânice woman, she always said hello when she walked pastâ.
Describing the incident, the neighbour added: âI was sat upstairs and I just heard a girl shouting âDJâ.
âI heard the girl screaming âI canât get to herâ and the next thing someone was kicking the door in.
âI know they were American bulldog type dogs. She was only a little woman, she didnât really stand a chance.
âThey always seemed like they were nice enough dogs, they were never out of control.
âYou donât know whatâs provoked it. Iâve heard people saying there was an argument but you just donât know.
âThe police must have shot them because I heard the shots, it sent our two dogs crazy.â
Police have cordoned off a terraced house in the street and are continuing to investigate.
A spokesman said: âAt around 5.15pm on Tuesday 24 September police received reports that a 44-year-old woman had been attacked by two dogs at an address on Graham Road in Widnes.
âOfficers attended the property and discovered that the woman was in a serious condition. Sadly, despite the best efforts of all those involved, the woman died at the scene. Her next of kin have been informed and are being supported by officers.
âFollowing the attack, repeated attempts were made by officers to safely secure the two dogs in order to remove them from the address.
âOne was safely detained, however officers were unable to secure the second dog. Attempts were made to tranquilise the second dog but this was unsuccessful so, in the interests of public safety, the dog was destroyed. The other dog remains in a secure kennel.â
According to MailOnline report, detective Inspector Ian Whiley said: âWe understand that people in the local community will be concerned when they hear about what has happened.
âBut I would like to reassure residents that we are doing all that we can to establish the full circumstances of the incident.
âHowever, at this stage, it is believed that the dogs were known to the woman and were living at the address. This has been an extremely distressing incident and our thoughts are with the womanâs family at this difficult time.â