Panda bite victim in China receives $83,000 from local government

A panda bear.
(Image credit: Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images)

Pandas are cute and may look cuddly, but they have strong jaw muscles and large molar teeth that they aren’t afraid to use against people — something Guan Quanzhi learned the hard way.

A panda made its way into Liziba, a village in the northwestern province of Gansu, last March and ran onto Guan's land as officials tried to capture it, the Lanzhou Evening News reports. Guan said the panda jumped out in front of him, covered in mud, and bit him in the leg, only letting go after another villager threw a coat over its head. The panda ended up escaping.

Guan had to undergo seven hours of surgery, and could have more operations in the future. His lawyer, Wang Chaohui, told Agence France-Presse that officials agreed to pay him 520,000 yuan, or $83,000, in compensation and that money will cover his medical bills.

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Catherine Garcia

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.