CTV.ca | Manitoba man killed in black bear attack
Manitoba man killed in black bear attack
Sat. Aug. 27 2005 8:01 AM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
A 69-year-old man was the victim of a deadly black bear attack north of Winnipeg on Friday.
The man had been out for a morning of plum picking in Selkirk, Man. RCMP say the man’s family reported him missing, then joined with a police officer to go on a search for him.
The group found the man’s body, but also came across the bear.
“The bear came after the (officer), who fired two shots with his service revolver,” Sgt. Steve Colwell told the Winnipeg Sun. “This turned the bear away and the (officer) was able to call for help.”
The bear was found dead several hours later.
The victim’s son read out a prepared statement to reporters Friday.
“He was a loving father, husband, grandfather. He was a kind and loving man who loved the outdoors. This is a real tragedy for our family, and it’s a very difficult time.”
A Manitoba Conservation spokesman told the Canadian Press that it’s difficult to determine what prompted the attack, but says most cases are predatory, with the bear considering the human as food.
It’s just the third time a black bear has killed a person in Manitoba’s history.
A helicopter was used to search for the wounded bear and people were warned to be on the lookout and avoid the animal. The animal was found dead several hours later.
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HART
We used to live in the “last house before the dump” in rural Manitoba, between Oakbank and Beausejour on Hillside Road. The back way to Selkirk down highways 206 and 44 was just about 10 miles from us. This story hits close to home with me and our family. My wife’s sister family lives near Selkirk. It’s a terrible tragedy.
We also used to have a cottage at Caddy Lake in the Whiteshell when I was very young. Bears used to come close to the trailers and cabins there, and I recall my mother used to go out the door with a frying pan in hand and shouting .. “Shoo you bear .. Shoo!” Of course, we all thought my mom was crazy for doing that 🙂 I was too young to remember all the details, but I imagined should would have said something like “I didn’t slave over a hot stove all night to feed that bear!”
HART