A woman in her 80s is recovering after a bear broke into her home in Estes Park, Colorado, and attacked her. The incident occurred at around 4.30am on August 27, when the bear entered through a closed but unlocked first floor window.
The homeowner woke to find the animal in her kitchen on the second floor. She told officials the bear charged her, scratched her across the stomach and knocked her to the ground before leaving through the same window. She called 911 and received hospital treatment for abdominal injuries. No bear was found when the Larimer County Sheriff’s office responded.
Search for the bear
Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) are investigating and seeking help from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service to locate the animal. ‘We have not located the bear involved yet,’ CPW public information officer Kara Van Hoose told the Estes Park Trail Gazette. ‘In accordance with CPW policy, bears responsible for attacks on humans represent a public safety threat due to dangerous behavior. They are lethally removed.’
The attack is the latest in a series of incidents in the area, with multiple reports of bears breaking into houses and vehicles. Traps have been set to minimise the risk to the public.
Community urged to stay vigilant
‘As we continue to navigate this extraordinary bear year, please continue to be vigilant in removing food and trash that may attract bears to your property,’ said CPW Area Wildlife Manager Jason Deutsch. ‘Wildlife officers are working tirelessly to respond to an unprecedented number of bear reports, and we are counting on the community to help mitigate conflict.’
Authorities advise locals to keep trash securely covered, lock doors, windows and cars, remove bird feeders until Thanksgiving, and never leave food out for bears.
Record bear sightings
Colorado is experiencing an unprecedented bear conflict year, with sightings doubling in the past year. Earlier this month, the department confirmed 6,129 reports of bear sightings since January 1, compared to 3,115 in the same period in 2025. This is largely due to natural food shortages caused by drought, low mountain snowpack and wildfires.
Bears are entering hyperphagia, a phase between late summer and early autumn when they build fat reserves for winter hibernation, spending up to 20 hours a day searching for food. The department says this year has been particularly challenging as natural food sources such as berries, nuts, grasses and plants have been depleted.
Elsewhere, a woman in Russia was dragged from her tent and mauled to death by a bear earlier this month while on a camping trip with her partner in the Altai Mountains. Snezhana Korolyova, 29, was staying with her partner when the animal tore apart their tent at 1am and hauled her away. Police and local gamekeepers shot into the air rather than at the bear, according to witnesses, due to Russian rules about not shooting bullets in populated areas. Reports claim the pair got engaged a day before she was killed.
