A Chinese Man Won $80,000 in Compensation for Bit by A Wild Panda

A Chinese man sued local government over an attack by a wild panda has won $80,000 in compensation AFP(Beijing) said Monday.

The animal wandered into Liziba village located at northwestern province of Gansu. Local officials are trying to capture it the Lanzhou Evening News reported.

“I saw a panda jump out in front of me, its body completely covered in mud” Chinese man said.

The creature bit him in the leg and only released its grip when another villager covered its head with a coat, the report said, and the incident in March last year left him with injuries requiring seven hours of surgery.

The panda escaped.

Nearby Baishuijiang National Nature Reserve, which is home to more than 100 wild pandas he said.

Following “negotiations”, officials agreed to pay compensation of 520,000 yuan ($83,000) according to AFP reported.

The number of wild giant pandas rose nearly 17 percent over the decade to 2013 to reach 1,864, state media cited an official survey data as saying this month, with a government agency crediting conservation measures for the increase.

In 2008 when a panda mauled a 20-year-old man who came into its enclosure at a zoo in southern China.

Chinese officials have warned people: though used mainly for crushing bamboo, a panda bite can be very serious.