A tragic incident unfolded in the northern Colorado mountains on Thursday, where a woman was fatally attacked while hiking alone, reportedly by a mountain lion. This marks the first such fatality in the state in over 25 years, as confirmed by authorities.

Later in the day, wildlife officers from Colorado Parks and Wildlife found and euthanized two mountain lions in proximity to the attack site, according to spokesperson Kara Van Hoose.

The attack took place in the mountainous region south of Glen Haven, a small community located about seven miles northeast of Estes Park, which serves as the gateway to the eastern entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park.

Shortly before noon, two hikers stumbled upon the mountain lion near the woman’s body on a secluded part of the Crosier Mountain trail, situated within a national forest.

The hikers managed to scare the mountain lion away by throwing rocks, allowing them to approach and try to assist the woman. One of the hikers, a physician, assessed the situation and found no pulse, Van Hoose reported.

Details on the woman’s injuries and cause of death were not immediately released.

Van Hoose said the search for other mountain lions in the area was ongoing. She said circumstances would dictate whether any additional lions that are found are killed.

Sightings of mountain lions are common in the forested area where the suspected attack occurred, but there have not been any recent documented attacks on humans, Van Hoose said.

“This is a very common time of year to take mountain lion sightings and reports and especially in Larimer County, where this is very good mountain lion habitat,” she said. “Trails in this area are in pretty remote land, so it’s wooded, it’s rocky, there’s elevation gains and dips.”

Mountain lion attacks are rare and Colorado’s last suspected fatal attack was in 1999, when a 3-year-old was killed. Two years before that, a 10-year-old boy was killed by a lion and dragged away while hiking with family members in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Last year in Northern California two brothers were stalked and then attacked by a lion that they tried to fight off. One of the brothers was killed.

The animals, also known as cougars, catamounts and other names, can weigh 130 pounds (60 kilograms) and grow to more than six feet (1.8meters) long1. They eat primarily deer.

Colorado has an estimated 3,800-4,400 of the animals, which are classified as a big game species in the state and can be hunted.