Grizzly Bear Suspectedโ inโข Yellowstone National Park Hiker Attack
YELLOWSTONE โNATIONAL PARK,โค WY – A hiker was injured Tuesday after an encounter โwith a bearโ in Yellowstone National Park, prompting a trail closure andโข a park-wide โassessment for safety. While the hikerโฃ initially believed the animal to be a black bear, park officials nowโฃ suspect a grizzly โคbear was responsible for the โขattack, based on location, behavior, size, โand subsequent track evidence.
Park officials report the trail โhas been closed indefinitely while rangers ensure no other hikers are at risk. According toโ a statement, the bear was likely acting in โขself-defenseโค and “will not be takingโ any management action against the bear.”
This โฃincidentโฃ underscores โthe inherent risks of recreating in bear country. โคYellowstone national ParkS website notes that bear attacksโฃ are rare, with only seven people killed by bears as the park was established inโ 1872. Though, the park alsoโข reports 125 people have drowned and 23 have died from burns after falling into hot springs, highlighting a broader range of dangers within the park.
Grizzly bears, once numbering around 50,000 across the American west โขprior to 1800, were โhunted to near extinction โby โคEuropean settlers, dwindling to fewerโ than 1,000 in theโค contiguous U.S. Thanks to recent conservation efforts, โthe grizzly bear โpopulation has rebounded to nearly โ2,000, primarily in โขWyoming, Idaho, andโ montana, according to the U.S. โFish and โWildlife Service.
Despite the population increase, encounters remain possibly hazardous. Current guidance fromโ the National โPark Service advises those โsurprised by โa grizzly bear toโ not fight back unless the โฃattack continues. This advice is โa โฃslight โคupdate from previousโ recommendations โคto โขsimply โขlie down and play โdead.
A similar, less severeโค encounter occurred last year in Yosemite National Park, California.โ Ultra-marathon runner Jon Kyle Mohr was attacked by โa black bear less than a mile โขfrom the finish lineโข of a 50-mile race. Mohr sustained scratches โขand torn clothing but avoided serious injury, attributing his luck to being near the populated vernalโค Falls trailhead.
“It was just a really strange,โค random โคcollision,” Mohr โขsaid, reflecting on the incident. “If I had rested my feet forโ 20 seconds longerโค at any โpoint,” during the 16-hour โrun, “it wouldn’t have happened.”
Park โฃofficials continue to urge visitors to be bear aware and follow safety guidelines while enjoying โYellowstone National Park.
