An “aggressive” lynx attacked two children and two dogs in a rural Georgia town, authorities said Sunday.
The Oglethorpe County Fire and Rescue Department posted on Facebook that the lynx attacked the children on Friday around 6:30 p.m. local time in the area of Melton and Williams McCurley roads in Winterville.
The two children attacked were a boy and a girl, and the youngest victim was 3, department spokesman Cody Gibbs said in a statement to PEOPLE on Monday.
The department said they notified the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Public Health, the Oglethorpe County Sheriff’s Office and Oglethorpe County EMS.
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The two attacks on the children took place 15-20 minutes apart, the spokesman added.
USA Today reported that the boy and girl were playing outside their homes less than a quarter mile away when the incidents occurred.
According to Gibbs, both victims were transported to local hospitals with non-life threatening injuries, and while it is not known if the lynx was rabid, the children were being treated as if it was.
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Two dogs were attacked in the same area the night before the attack, Gibbs said.
“We suspect that it is the same animal that attacked them all,” he added, noting that it was a “definitely strange set of circumstances.”
While taking care of the girl at the scene, the duty teams found out about the boy’s attack, they say USA Today. During the attack, the girl was scratched and received one bite, the newspaper writes. The extent of the boy’s injuries was not immediately known.
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No additional attacks were reported from Thursday and Friday, but officials warned the public to remain vigilant.
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“If you live in the area, please be aware of your surroundings and keep a close eye on your children when they are outside,” the Oglethorpe County Fire and Rescue Department said.
The Oglethorpe County Sheriff’s Office and Oglethorpe County EMS did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
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