A bear attacked a hiker in a Montana national park, marking the second such assault in recent weeks following a fatal encounter that killed a Florida man, according to reports.
Details of the Latest Attack
The incident unfolded on May 21 near Lake Josephine on the east side of Glacier National Park. Devin Dufrene, 21, told SFGate that he was walking along the lake's north shore with his sister and three college students when they 'heard a scream.'
'Shortly after, a person from the group in front of us was running back screaming, 'bear attack,'' Dufrene said. He and his sister attempted to calm the man down, but he continued running and screaming.
Dufrene managed to connect to a satellite device and report the incident to emergency services at around 1:30 p.m. He then turned around and headed back towards the trailhead. However, the group soon noticed a bear walking up the trail towards them.
'Knowing there was an attack up trail and now a bear approaching from the opposite direction, we decided to ascend up the cliff side and wait for the bear to pass,' Dufrene explained.
After getting back on the trail, Dufrene encountered a group of rangers heading towards the attack site at around 1:50 p.m. The rangers instructed them to return to the trailhead and make as much noise as possible.
Dufrene noticed new signs announcing that all trails past the Many Glacier Hotel were closed. He also saw rangers heading up the trail carrying an empty stretcher. A park alert confirmed that a section of the North Shore Trail was closed on May 21.
Previous Fatal Attack
The incident is the second bear attack in Glacier National Park this month. The park confirmed in a press release on May 9 that a hiker named Anthony Pollio, from Davie, Florida, had been found dead following a 'bear encounter.'
Pollio had shared plans to hike the Mount Brown Trail on May 3, and park officials were notified about his disappearance a day later. Search and rescue teams uncovered some of Pollio's personal items around 2.5 miles from the trailhead. His body was discovered at around 12 p.m. on May 6, about 50 feet off the trail in a densely wooded area. Park officials noted that he had injuries 'consistent with a bear encounter.'
Recent Bear Encounters
On Monday, a pair of hikers uploaded a video of their encounter with two young grizzly bears in Glacier National Park to Instagram. The video, shared by @m_vanzeeland, showed two bears sprinting past. One of the hikers admitted deploying a 'little bit' of bear spray during the encounter. After running into a bear again, one of the hikers shouted, 'Hey, back up!' Moments later, the bear wandered away.
The Independent has contacted Glacier National Park for comment.
