A piranha attack occurred on Christmas Day in the Parana River in Rosario, Argentina, injuring 70 people, the Associated Press reported.
The carnivorous fish bit the toes and fingers of several children when people went into the water to cool off from 100-degree temperatures in the Argentinian city, the AP reported.
Federico Cornier who is the director of the lifeguards at the river said thousands of people were in the water when bathers began to complain that they were being bitten, with bite marks all over their feet and hands, the AP reported.
One of the children injured was a girl who lost an entire part of her finger, according to Health Undersecretary Gabriela Quintanilla, the AP reported.
According to Cornier, the type of piranha that attacked the swimmers are known as palometas, "a type of piranha, big, voracious and with sharp teeth that can really bite," the AP reported.
Quintanilla said Rosario is about 310 kilometers north of Buenos Aires and is is experiencing hotter than normal heat waves, causing peoples to cool off in piranha infested waters, the AP reported. According to officials, the hot temperatures is also the reason the carnivorous fish are coming up to the rivers surface.
Alberto Manino, a paramedic who helped the injured bathers, said some of the children had suffered from serious bites, taking off entire digits, according to the AP.
The paramedic told Argentinian news channel Todos Noticias that city beaches were all closed but due to extremely high temperatures, there were swimmers back in the water as quickly as a half-hour after the piranha incident, the AP reported.
