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Police say an officer running away from a rabid fox in a Hudson Valley village accidentally shot himself in the chest.

Authorities say 24-year-old Ellenville police officer Harold Nunuvero was struck while responding to a report about the fox in the village on Tuesday morning.

Village police Chief Philip Mattracion says the animal charged at Nunuvero and he tried to jump over a nearby fence. But his foot got caught and he flipped over. Nunuvero's gun went off as he landed and struck the officer's bulletproof vest.

Another officer shot and killed the fox while Nunuvero was on the ground.

Nunuvero was later taken to a hospital for treatment and released.

Mattracion says the officer's bulletproof vest "without question" saved his life.