A man came close to death Wednesday in the Northern California city of Tracy when he went to look at a car for sale parked on the street, and came face-to-face with an aggressive bull, KTLA sister station KTXL has reported.
It was a pain King’s time in the Army didn’t prepare him for.
“I remember feeling the horn going through my right side and the next thing I knew, I was on the ground, close to a bush, and I crawled between the bush and the house and the bull stood over me and snorted for about 20 minutes,” King told KTXL.
King said his memory is hazy, but he remembers being gored twice before someone stopped and honked his horn.
“He didn’t see me, I think,” he said. “He had seen the bull.”
King said he called out to him for help while he hid. He was rushed to the hospital and, after three hours of surgery, is recovering from wounds on both sides of his stomach too graphic to include in this story.
“It’s the worst thing I’ve ever had. I’ve never hurt this bad,” King told KTXL. “I’ve had broken legs, everything, and I’ve never hurt this bad. Never ever.”
King said the doctor told him his belly fat saved him from even worse injury. A family member told him he had an angel there to make sure he didn’t bleed to death.
“It was Karma because back in the 70s, I had pulled a lady out of a burning building, so now I think I’m being paid back, by not dying. I think he might be right. That’s the only thing I can say — I don’t know why else. I shouldn’t be here right now, but I am,” King said.
His biggest focus now is recovery. Doctors told King they may not know the full extent of his injuries for six months.
At 69 years old, King said the worst part is that he may never be able to do what he loves — tend to the dozens of acres he owns. King hopes his story will encourage others to be more aware of their surroundings and is now holding now holding onto words he was told while serving as a sergeant in the Army.
“If you’re hurt, just get better,” he said. “That’s all you can do.”