A mom stopped a cougar from attacking her 8-year-old child by screaming at it, Washington national park officials said

• A mom stopped a cougar from attacking her 8-year-old child by yelling at the animal, officials said.
• The child was left with minor injuries as a result of the attack at a Washington national park.

A brave mother managed to stop a cougar from attacking her 8-year-old child while camping at a Washington state national park by screaming at the big cat, park officials said.

The youngster survived the terrifying incident at Olympic National Park on Saturday and was left with only minor injuries, the National Park Service said in a statement.

"The cougar casually abandoned its attack after being yelled and screamed at by the child's mother," said the park service.

The National Park Service said that park officials were told around 6:30 p.m. on Saturday that a cougar attacked a child camping with their family at Lake Angeles and staff quickly responded.

The agency said that once the child's medical condition "was assessed and stabilized, the family was escorted back to the trailhead by park personnel." The child was later taken to a local hospital to be evaluated.

As a result of the "extreme nature" of the incident, all remaining campers in the Lake Angeles area were evacuated as park officials closed the area and several nearby trails "out of an abundance of caution," the park service said.

The park service called the cougar attack on the child "extraordinarily rare" and said that if the animal is located by park law enforcement and wildlife personnel, it will be euthanized and a necropsy will be performed.

"This may provide clues as to why the animal attacked since cougars are rarely seen and attacks on humans are extraordinarily rare," the National Park Service said.

It added, "Olympic National Park has extensive protocols in place for wildlife observations, interactions, and attacks and the lethal removal of this cougar is in line with these protocols."

According to the park service, all of Olympic National Park is considered to be "cougar territory."

"If you meet a cougar, it is important to not run because it could trigger the cougar's attack instinct," the park service warned. "Instead, people should group together, appear as large as possible, keep eyes on the animal, make lots of noise, and shout loudly. Throwing rocks or objects at the cougar is also recommended."