Just weeks after Alderman Howard Brookins Jr. of Chicago’s 21st ward gave a speech decrying “aggressive squirrels,” the rodents seem to have gotten revenge.
While enjoying a bike ride on the Cal-Sag Trail, a kamikaze squirrel ran into his front wheel and get stuck in the spokes, which sent Brookins flying over his handlebars.
The alderman suffered a broken nose, knocked out teeth, and a fractured skull. The squirrel died.
On his Facebook page, Brookins assured his followers he was OK and apologized for not being able to attend any Ward or neighborhood events in the near future because of the serious accident, which he said will require multiple surgeries to heal.
Nevertheless, he didn’t seem to lose his sense of humor over the incident.
"I can think of no other reason for this squirrel's actions than that it was like a suicide bomber, getting revenge," he jokingly told The Chicago Tribune.