A grizzly bear attacked a group of schoolchildren and their teacher in Bella Coola, British Columbia, leaving 11 people injured, two of whom were in critical condition. The incident occurred approximately 430 miles northwest of Vancouver, with conservation officials unable to locate the animal.
A male teacher “got the whole brunt of it,” while some children were hit with bear spray as adults tried to fend off the animal, according to Veronica Schooner, a parent whose 10-year-old son was part of the school group but not attacked. She described that the bear ran close to her son but targeted someone else, noting he even felt its fur.
British Columbia Emergency Health Services reported two people critically injured, two more seriously hurt, and seven others treated at the scene. Patients were transported to a nearby airport for airlifts to the nearest hospital. The group hailed from Acwsalcta School, run by the Indigenous Nuxalk Nation in the remote town 700km north-west of Vancouver.
The B.C. Wildlife Federation, a nonprofit focused on environmental preservation, stated that a 2017 provincial hunting ban on grizzlies has led to increased attacks due to bears being free to learn dangerous behaviors. Since the prohibition, the number of bear reports to the British Columbia Conservation Officer Service has doubled. “With no hunting pressure, grizzlies and humans will increasingly occupy the same spaces with inevitable consequences,” said BC Wildlife Federation Executive Director Jesse Zeman.
The province’s parks minister, Davidson, stated it was too soon to reconsider the hunting ban, noting, “This is an ongoing live situation where the bear is still at large and the community doesn’t feel safe.” She added that her ministry hopes families of those attacked experience “healing and comfort in the coming days.”