90-Year-Old Man Survives Attack by Pit Bulls

A 90-year-old man who survived an attack by two pit bulls in the Port Richmond section of Staten Island yesterday morning was transferred to Richmond University Medical Center in critical condition.

The man, Henry Piotrowski, was sitting on his property on 94 John St. around 11 a.m. when two male pit bulls ran up to him and attacked him, police said. New York City Animal Care and Control recovered the dogs on nearby Newark Street.

A neighbor, Reginald Bell, said he saw the attack while parking his car and came to Mr. Piotrowski's rescue. "He looked like a man on his back, playing with his dogs and covered with what looked like red paint," Mr. Bell said. By the time Mr. Bell got to Mr. Piotrowski, bones in his arm and left calf were exposed.

After running to his house to call 911, Mr. Bell said he ran out with a butcher knife to scare the dogs away.

Mr. Bell said he had seen the dogs in the neighborhood before. The dogs were transported to the Brooklyn animal control center after they were captured. The name of the dogs' owner has not been released.