A dingo almost ate this toddler, until the boy's parents fought off the pack

A father in Australia fought off several dingoes after his toddler son was locked in the jaws and dragged by one of the wild dogs early Friday, emergency medical officials told local news outlets.

The 14-month-old was dragged by the back of his neck and suffered a fractured skull and deep cuts on his head from the attack.

The family was asleep in their campervan on Fraser Island in Queensland when a dingo entered and grabbed the child. Paramedic Ben Du Toit said his parents woke up when they heard their child screaming and the sound moving farther away.

"The dad got out to investigate and found the dingo dragging the toddler away. He also spotted several other dingoes near the vicinity," Du Toit told Australia's ABC. "He immediately ran up and dragged his son and chased some of the dingoes off."

The boy was airlifted to a hospital on Australia's mainland and is now conscious and stable at Queensland Children's Hospital, Queensland Health spokesperson Christopher McLaughlan told CNN.

Pilot Frank Bertoli praised the parent's quick action in saving the boy.

"I think (a dingo) made his way under the canvas to get into the camper trailer," he told ABC. "It's pretty horrific to hear something like that come over the phone and we just wanted to get there to be able to help."

Fraser Island has now seen at least three dingo attacks on children this year, Bertoli said. Warnings throughout the island tell visitors to avoid the wild dogs, native to Australia.

Contributing: The Associated Press. Follow USA TODAY's Ryan Miller on Twitter @RyanW_Miller