Sandra Vincente, 38, who was elected mayor of the village of Sénouillac in 2014, in the Tarn department, was found in her yard by her partner on Tuesday. She was found next her two Rottweilers, who were found with bloody mouths. Vincente is disabled and had been using a wheelchair for 10 years. Her family has resided in the village for several generations, according to La Depeche.
The public prosecutor in Albi, the capital of Tarn, is investigating the incident and an autopsy has been ordered.
"She was fatally injured by dog bites," deputy prosecutor Frédéric Cousin told AFP. "Her clothes were torn too."
Bernard Ferret, the mayor of Sénouillac, was in shock at his colleague's death.
"It is incomprehensible and unfair. Nobody deserves that especially her," he told La Depeche on Wednesday, before saying that Vincente "was very active" despite her handicap.
Investigators still need to determine whether Vincente died before she was bitten by her dogs. Albi prosecutors said that there is currently no evidence that human activity is the cause of the death.
"The city council has regret and sadness to announce the death of Sandra VICENTE, deputy mayor. The elected officials and all staff are partnered with his family's pain," read a statement posted on the municipality of Senoillac's Facebook page. The post showed the flags of the town hall were at half-mast in tribute to Vicente.
The two dogs were taken to a veterinarian to avoid endangering other people.
In the U.S., approximately 4.5 million dog bites occur each year, and 800,000 of those bites result in medical care, according to a study from the Center For Disease Control.
Other serious dog attacks have occurred in recent weeks. On January 22, a six-year-old boy died after being attacked by a Pitbull in Hampton County, South Carolina.
The previous day, a Kentucky man said he was left "pretty chewed up" after being surrounded and attacked by three dogs while out walking in Louisville's Shawnee Park.
Meanwhile, in Aberdeen in Scotland on January 19, a pet Staffordshire bull terrier came to the rescue of a woman whose front teeth were knocked out by her "serial abuser" boyfriend, biting him so hard that he had to get stitches and spend two days in hospital.
According to PetComments.com, the dog breed with the strongest bite is the Kangal, which can deliver a blow of 743 pounds per square inch (PSI). American Bandogge has the second strongest bite, with a force of 730 BSI. Rottweilers have a bite of 328 PSI.
I mean, Rottweil is a town in Germany ...