Piranha-Like Fish Palometas Injure 10 Swimmers In Argentinian River

Ten Swimmers Injured By Swarm Of Carnivorous Piranha-Like Fish
The group of swimmers were attacked by palometas (file picture)
The group of swimmers were attacked by palometas (file picture)
brian.gratwicke/Flickr

Ten people have been injured after they were attacked by a school of piranha-like fish as they cooled off in an Argentinian river.

The attack was carried out by “palometas”, it was confirmed on Saturday, the Associated Press in Buenos Aires reports.

The incident took place in the Paraná River in Rosario, 186 miles north-east of Buenos Aires, as temperatures nudged 41C.

According to the Buenos Aires Herald, the fish were in the area due to a combination of high temperatures and a lower number of caimans, which ordinarily prey on them.

One woman told the newspaper: “I am a little bit afraid and I will stay on the sea shore. There is no chance I’ll go deeper.”

A man is treated for injuries after the attack in December

Back in December, more than 70 bathers were injured by a swarm of the palometas in the same stretch of river.

“This is not normal,” said Federico Cornier on television.

He added: “It’s normal for there to be an isolated bite or injury, but the magnitude in tis case was great… this is an exceptional event.”

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