A grizzly bear is being hunted by Montana authorities on Tuesday after the animal allegedly attacked and killed a woman who was camping overnight near the rural town of Ovando, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks said.
Authorities said the victim was on a cycling and camping trip when the large bear suddenly attacked her early Tuesday morning, Greg Lemon, administrator of communications for Fish, Wildlife and Parks said.
Mauled to Death by Grizzly Bear
The agency put together a team that determined the species of the bear using tracks and details at the scene of the attack, Lemon said. He added that when authorities locate the animal, they were planning on euthanizing it. Lemon said it was a rare incident to have a bear and a human being meet each other while resulting in a fatality. He noted, however, that every year, people and bears have frequent encounters.
Powell County Sheriff Gavin Roselles said authorities would not release details of the victim's identity until her family members were notified of the incident. The investigation and search for the bear responsible for the attack would be conducted as a joint operation between the sheriff's office and the Fish, Wildlife and Parks team, CNN reported.
Roselles said that there was an earlier encounter with the bear at the campsite before the attack on the woman. He said that the animal returned to the campsite multiple times before mauling and killing the victim. The county sheriff said their priority was the safety of the community followed by the location of the animal.
Tiffanie Zavarelli, an Ovando saloon owner, said the incident was the first fatal bear attack that happened within the community's history. Her family has been the owner of the Trixi's Antler Saloon in the area for three generations. The business owner said residents were used to living in close proximity with bears and are fully aware of the risks they were taking.
Zavarelli said that the town was small and had less than a hundred residents where everybody knew everyone else. She added that they knew the people from Montana and said they knew how to be "bear aware" but noted the threat could still come.
Risks of Living Near Bears
Leigh Ann Valiton, the owner of the Blackfoot Inn and a general store in the area, said Ovando residents were terrified after finding out about the fatal attack. More and more grizzly bears have been in encounters with humans in the northern Rockies. This is primarily due to the federally protected animals expanding their territories as well as the growing number of humans living in the region, The Guardian reported.
But just last month, a different situation unfolded in the Yellowstone River north of Gardiner, Montana. Wildlife officials were investigating the discovery of a grizzly bear's remains where the animal was decapitated and declawed.
The Fish, Wildlife and Parks said the 25-year-old male animal was found washed ashore in an area along the river on June 10. Authorities immediately hatched plans to remove the bear's remains using a boat or helicopter the next morning, USA Today reported.
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