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KEARNS — A woman who was attacked by two dogs she stopped to help said Tuesday she is still recovering a week later from the numerous injuries she suffered.
Marissa Bowen said on Mar. 14, she was driving east on 5400 South when she spotted two Rottweilers running loose near Cougar Lane.
"I saw these two dogs were almost hit by a car," Bowen said in an interview with KSL-TV. "I didn't want that to happen, so I pulled over."
At first, Bowen said the dogs appeared friendly.
"They were licking my hands. I scratched their heads and said, 'Good doggies,'" Bowen said.
The situation, however, changed quickly when the dogs started biting at Bowen's shoes.
"That's when they full-on started biting me, and then they got me to the ground and started dragging me," Bowen said.
Bowen began to fear the worst.
"I remember thinking in that moment, 'If somebody doesn't stop and help, I think I'm going to die and I'm not going to be able to hold my little boy again,'" Bowen said.
Fortunately, a Utah Transit Authority bus driver pulled up at that moment and intervened.
"I know he scared off the dogs for a moment so I could get on the bus," Bowen said.
Even at that, Bowen said the Rottweilers remained ferocious.
"The dogs were trying to get on the bus," Bowen said. "They were also attacking the windshield wipers — like biting them, trying to bite the door."
A week later, the woman still displayed obvious signs of the attack.
"They got my arm, they got my side, my hip, my back and my butt, both of my thighs, my knee and both of my ankles," Bowen said. "Oh, and a spot on my head. Yeah. It's kind of everywhere. It's still surreal that it happened and that I made it out of it."
UTA planned to recognize the driver, Nick Pappas, on Wednesday, per a department spokesman.
Bowen expressed her thanks for the driver's actions.
"If he hadn't stopped, I'm pretty sure I would be dead or close to dead, and that I wouldn't, sorry, and that I wouldn't get to see my little boy grow up," Bowen said. "He not only impacted my life, but he impacted my family's life."
Family members set up a GoFundMe* page to help offset medical costs due to the attack.
Animal control has identified the owner of the dogs and is working with him, according to UTA's Carl Arky.
*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
