Postwoman and CWU member Sharon Singer received 19 separate injuries when she was pounced on by two large powerful Doberman dogs at an address in Wrangle, near Boston on Monday 3rd July.
This occurred in the week of the CWU and Royal Mail Dog Awareness Week.
CWU's National Healthy and Environment Officer, Dave Joyce; gives us some detail of the appalling incident whilst giving thanks to Sharon and her husband for allowing us to use photographs of some of her injuries on this website, in order to highlight the Dangerous Dogs/Irresponsible Owner risk to Postal Workers, in the hope of further raising public awareness.
Dave begins by setting out details of the incident and of Sharon's injuries:
The most serious of the injuries to Sharon's arm required four hours of complex reconstruction surgery and skin grafts to repair muscles, tendons, nerves and ligament damage. She is currently in the Boston Pilgrim Hospital.
Sharon does the delivery round in Wrangle, just outside Boston which she shares with her husband David on different days of the week and ironically either one of them could have ended up as the victim.
There was no knowledge of the presence of these dogs, which apparently arrived at the house only a couple of days prior to the attack as Sharon entered the address to deliver mail to the occupants. The two big dogs which are of a powerful, athletic breed attacked very quickly and aggressively and came at Sharon from nowhere, unexpectedly without warning.
This breed of dog is used by Police forces and the military in various countries in Europe.
Sharon remains in hospital and will have to undergo extensive treatment and further operations to treat her various serious injuries.
Royal Mail has suspended deliveries to the address and the Communication Workers Union is assisting Sharon and David and working with Royal Mail in relation to the shock to work colleagues at Boston Delivery Office.
Sharon has been through what can only be described as a terrible, terrifying ordeal, which I wouldn’t wish upon anyone.
A Police investigation is underway and those responsible for the irresponsibility and reckless ownership of these potentially dangerous animals should face the full force of the law in due course if, as expected, the Dangerous Dogs Act has been breached.
Sharon’s life was in danger when this attack took place and we are just relieved that she survived. Her life however will never be quite the same. I only hope the physical and psychological damage sustained in this attack can be repaired, but it won’t be 100%. It never is in such cases.
Referring to the Dog Awareness Week, Dave writes:
Last week was Royal Mail/Communication Workers Union National Dog Awareness Week because seven postal workers are attacked and injured by dogs every day in the UK. 2,500 a year and 15,000 in the last five years. It’s ironic that Sharon should suffer such an appalling attack during Dog Awareness Week.
We have been appealing publicly for dog owners to be more responsible and to control and restrain their animals when postmen and women deliver their mail, packets and parcels, six days a week, 52 weeks a year and to 29 million addresses.
The public enjoy a first class service from Royal Mail which is the best in the world and everybody looks forward these days to their mail order items being delivered by their local postman or post woman. Unfortunately however, some of them, but a minority, don’t give any thought to the safety of the ordinary postman or woman when they bring their mail to their door.
Postal workers deserve, and are entitled, to be safe at work wherever they go and to go home at the end of the day as fit and as healthy as when they arrived in the morning – not as in too many cases, when they end up like Sharon, being taken to hospital in an ambulance with serious life changing injuries.
The Dogs have been seized by the Police and a Criminal Investigation is underway. Royal Mail has suspended deliveries to the address indefinitely. Further reports will be made in due course as the investigation and potential prosecution case develops and continues.
On behalf of CWU/HQ we send our best wishes for a speedy and full recovery to Sharon Singer and I would like to thank Sharon and David for their agreement and willingness to support full open publicity regarding the details of the attack along with the Injury Photographs.
Finally my thanks to all the Eastern No5 Branch Area and Local Reps for their involvement and support and the support of all the Boston DO members.
Here, you can download LTB388/17 which includes some of the photos of Sharon's injuries and Top Tips for Dog Owners.
Source: Dave Joyce / CWU
