A Wingham, Ont. man is facing charges after his pit bull attacked three children at a church on Nov. 13.

According to Huron County OPP, paramedics were called to a church and private school on John Street West in Wingham to help three children that had been attacked by what they described as an "out-of-control vicious dog."

The children, aged four, eight and 16, suffered multiple bite injuries. Police say they were treated in hospital and released the same day.

Following an investigation, police determined an American Staffordshire Terrier, a breed that is considered a pit bull under provincial legislation and is banned in Ontario, slipped its collar and ran from its owner's residence to the nearby church where the attack occurred.

Police say the father of one of the children and an older sister tried to intervene, but the dog continued until the owner arrived and took control of the dog.

The owner of the dog, a 20-year-old man from Wingham, is facing three counts of an owner failing to prevent biting or attacking a person and one count of owning a pit bull. He is expected to appear in provincial court in Goderich on Dec. 3.